AH Challenge: Sassanid Survival

Hello to everyone!
Despite my tremendous absence (caused by many life difficulties and a car accident + overtime @ work have kept me off of teh internetz for a good two months), I've been mapping out a TL of the survival of one of my favorite civs in history; Sassanid Persia.

I would very much like everyone's opionion on how to produce a non-ASB Empire which survives to the modern age with a respectable chunk of land.

I accept several givens as time goes on in the Empire:
-Limited Monarchy develops.
-Elected Legislature.
-Oligarchic Priesthood develops into a 'council of scholars' consisting of philosopical, scientific, and religious leaders (part of a greater trend of religious acceptance).
-Islam and Christianiy both emerge.

Other than that, I'm open. I will appreciate any help.

Thanks!
 
Ok, Ok, where to start...

I'm assuming you want Islam to form when it did in OTL.

In that case, Caliph Umar was fine in OTL with just taking Mesopotamia and didn't want to conquer the Persian heartland. He is recorded to have wished that a "mountain of fire" would form between Iran and Mesopotamia. However, Umar ultimately decided that Iran couldn't be left as a potential threat and reluctantly conquered it. I think a good POD would be Umar and the Persian Shah (Yazdigird, I think) working out a peace treaty.

But then, the Sassanids are going to have to deal with later Arab dynasties in Iraq looking to expand, as well as multiple waves of Turkic invasions. I think the Sassanids surviving the Turks is almost ASB, the best you could hope for is a Turkic dynasty that converts to Zorastrianism and is integrated into Persian culture.
 
Ok, Ok, where to start...

I'm assuming you want Islam to form when it did in OTL.

In that case, Caliph Umar was fine in OTL with just taking Mesopotamia and didn't want to conquer the Persian heartland. He is recorded to have wished that a "mountain of fire" would form between Iran and Mesopotamia. However, Umar ultimately decided that Iran couldn't be left as a potential threat and reluctantly conquered it. I think a good POD would be Umar and the Persian Shah (Yazdigird, I think) working out a peace treaty.

But then, the Sassanids are going to have to deal with later Arab dynasties in Iraq looking to expand, as well as multiple waves of Turkic invasions. I think the Sassanids surviving the Turks is almost ASB, the best you could hope for is a Turkic dynasty that converts to Zorastrianism and is integrated into Persian culture.

It's all roger wilco on the Turks my friend, I agree that some sort of personal union would be most successful there...hell, a good third of the Persian dynasties weren't Persian OTL anyway.

(Or perhaps the Shah points the Turkic tribes toward Roman/Arab Anatolia with a wink,nudge, and a bunch of gold ;) )

That's interesting about Umar. If we can get a nice dividing line between the two states in OTL Iraq, and a period of peace during Umar's time as Kalifa, the region could be very much up for grabs.

Thanks for the post!
 
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