AH Challenge: Byzantine Republic

Not to many chances... Emperor Stavrakios threatened to abolish the Empire and proclaim a Republic If the crown didnot go to his wife... after he was mortaly wounded in the battle of Pliska...
His sister Prokopia and her husband Michael Rangabes conspired with Senators and officials and forced him to abdicate... Michael Rangabes was proclaimed Emperor Michael I...
Even if Stavrakios did abolished the Empire and proclaim a Republic it would have been only a matter of time before a power-hungry General marches to the capital and proclaim himself Imperator Caesar...
 

Orieche15

Banned
Have the empire survive into the 1800s, a decaying bzyantine
empire with its best days long behind it finds itself unable to
modernise and has a revolution. After the revolution the
empire becomes a republic.
 

Xen

Banned
Have the empire survive into the 1800s, a decaying bzyantine
empire with its best days long behind it finds itself unable to
modernise and has a revolution. After the revolution the
empire becomes a republic.

Take it one step further! Avoid the Fourth Crusade, the members of that crusade go with the original plan and attack Egypt. The crusade is able to gain small holds mostly around Alexandria but within a century even that crusader state dies. Not drained by the occupying crusader army, and fighting an expensive war the Byzantine Empire manages to survive as a mighty state for several centuries. The Turks aren't able to get a foot hold in Europe and end up settling in the Levant and Mesopatamia Valley and are rivals of the Byzantine Empire.

The Byzantine Empire is a powerful state but corruption, economic stagnation and moral decay has weakened the integrity of the Empire when a young French General, Napoleon Bonaparte's armies arrive. The Royal Family is forced to flee, and Napoleon sets one of his brothers up as the Emperor of Constantinople. After the wars end, the original Byzantine dynasty is restored, but has lost much prestige for fleeing. In 1838, the monarchy is overthrown by a rather liberal, democratic revolution, and a Republic is declared in place of the monarchy.

There it is the Byzantine Republic!
 

Orieche15

Banned
Take it one step further! Avoid the Fourth Crusade, the members of that crusade go with the original plan and attack Egypt. The crusade is able to gain small holds mostly around Alexandria but within a century even that crusader state dies. Not drained by the occupying crusader army, and fighting an expensive war the Byzantine Empire manages to survive as a mighty state for several centuries. The Turks aren't able to get a foot hold in Europe and end up settling in the Levant and Mesopatamia Valley and are rivals of the Byzantine Empire.

The Byzantine Empire is a powerful state but corruption, economic stagnation and moral decay has weakened the integrity of the Empire when a young French General, Napoleon Bonaparte's armies arrive. The Royal Family is forced to flee, and Napoleon sets one of his brothers up as the Emperor of Constantinople. After the wars end, the original Byzantine dynasty is restored, but has lost much prestige for fleeing. In 1838, the monarchy is overthrown by a rather liberal, democratic revolution, and a Republic is declared in place of the monarchy.

There it is the Byzantine Republic!

thats a great idea we should do a thread about that!
 
After Manzikert the Empire tires of 50 years of pitiful rulers that get little done but warring amongst themselves. A group of nobles rise up, install a puppet, and create an equivalent to the Magna Carta. By 1150 the Senate holds real power, the people prosper under more effective leadership, and the Emperor is basically a figurehead selected by the Senate who rules for one lifetime, no consecutive emperors may be of the same bloodline. Myrocephalion goes in favor of the Byzantines, who eventually solidify a territory over Anatolia, the Caucasus, northern Syria, the Balkans, southern Italy, most of the Mediterranean islands, and the Crimean. They will try for older parts of the Roman Empire and perhaps Persia and the Ukraine as events permit, but by 1400 they are an advancing nation with firm boundaries that is home of a Renaissance after the Plague.
 
There will always be an usurper... a power hungry General who will use his troops against the Republic which he considers weak... Imagine Emperor Stavrakios establishing a Republic modelling it after Roman Republic... it would be only a matter of time before some General from the Phokas or the Skleros or the Briggas or another family to start a civil war...
I see very very veryyyyy few chances of succeding...
 
Weren't republics before the French and American revolutions just oligarchys of powerful families? So a scenario is needed where the powerful families conspire to overthrow the emperor of the day and elect a Doge or something?______________ I have no suggestions, that is what seems to be needed for the empire to become a republic, govt by oligarchy of powerful equals.
 
Besides the Senate who could in legal terms be the Supreme Governing body of the "Byzantine Republic" had lost its significanse from the 6th-7th Century AD... And it had become a mere municipal council for Constantinople...
 

Rockingham

Banned
Weren't republics before the French and American revolutions just oligarchys of powerful families? So a scenario is needed where the powerful families conspire to overthrow the emperor of the day and elect a Doge or something?______________ I have no suggestions, that is what seems to be needed for the empire to become a republic, govt by oligarchy of powerful equals.

The Corsican one wasn't, and my impression was that Venice was many powerful families. I'm not so suie about the Netherlands.
 
Say the Despot of Morea is called to Constantinople to suceed a fallen emperor. He leaves planning to appoint another Despot from the capitol, but his lines of communication are cut off due to Venetian attacks on his ships, so the Greeks send representatives from each town to Mystras, where they elect a successor who is immediately accountable to this commission.
 
This is practically impossible in High Byzantine period, the leading families are simply not powerful or established enough.

From the late 11th century onwards I do not see why there should not be culturally Byzantine republics. The importance of the role of the Emperor, and the role of Caesaro-papism, makes a Byzantine Republic based on Constantinople extremely difficult.
 
No No No... No Byzantine Republic could have survived the autocratic tensions of the Realm... Besides they were many many individuals who would like to grasp power with violence...
 
Even if Byzantine Empire stands until 17th-19th centuries it wouldnt have been what it was in the past... It might have been evolved to a loose confederation of states (Kings, Dukes, Archbishops etc.) under an Emperor-elect... Just like the HRE at the time of its dissolution... BUT IN NO WAY A REPUBLIC!!
 
The latest I could see it done is just after Michael VIII, avoid the civil war and have a strong emperor who can take advantage of the local Mongol problem to attack Anatolia. More realistically, avoid the 4th crusade, or have Myrocephalion or Manzikert go in favor of the Byantines.
 
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