AHC: Byzantine Comback post 1400

Have fun with this one.

And a Comback implies at least becoming a minor power. And the Comback must last them till 1500.
 
Last edited:
Ottoman Interregnum is the best bet. They get backing by HRE or other interested powers and retake southern Greece, force surrender outside Edirne while sultan is away.

Got a similar scenario coming up in my TL, though not with the goal of ERE restoration...
 

GdwnsnHo

Banned
Victory for the Crusade of Varna (1444)?

Victory there would allow the reconstruction of the Byzantine state, including forcing the Turks out of Europe. A resonable PoD would be that the Karamanids invade when they were meant to invade rather than earlier, splitting the resources, and giving either side a free(er) hand to wreck the Ottomans whilst the other fights them, then vice-versa. Either way, the Ottomans are forced to fight a two-front war.

The speed of any post-Varna ascendancy depends on how they divide Ottoman Europe - If Bulgaria and Byzantinum are seperate, it'd slow down the Romans, but either way, the Romans now act as a firm buffer state. In Anatolia, we now have a much stronger Karamanid state that may end up being the next Ottomans. (Assuming either of them survive the war), or helping tear the Anatolian peninsula apart.

What is interesting is not only would the Romans have to make some concessions to the Crusaders, but Karaman may well expect some as well for their part in the war - how that situation is handled will change how Anatolia is handled in the future.

After that, the Romans would probably have to focus on rebuilding their fleet, and controlling the Bosporus and the Dardanelles- or at least preventing the Turks from controlling it. The new influx of money, and (probable) manpower will help with that - and can also go towards a reconquest of 4th Crusader Greece and the Aegean. An attempt to conquer the Serbs, Bosnians, Albanians and Ragusans would also be a route to go down, this Byzantine Empire is very much a European state at the moment, and could do well if it accepted that, and made peace with the Europeans and the Pope after cleaning up the Balkans and Greece.

The only big spanner, with or without Asia Minor is the presence of Venice and Genoa. To really have the Romans restore themselves, they need to have a bigger fleet, remove their tax exemptions, and take their Aegean, Black, and Ionian possessions, this would probably be the big war(s) that determines if the Romans can flourish. They need control of that trade, for the short period that it'll be a big breadwinner.

After this, since they need a strong navy anyway to take territories from Venice and Genoa, then if they hold the Genoese black sea territories, the Byzantines could use this to build more overseas territories. So they could invade Trezbizond, and use that as a route into Georgia in a following war. And maybe they could take over Cyprus and/or Rhodes if they are still independent. By this point I'd expect the Turks (whoever is on top) would be spoiling for a fight, so there is far less freedom than there was previously.

If there is another war with the Turks, lets hope the Romans have continued to build a powerful navy, and maybe a decent force of Marines - in one war they could prevent any Turkish faction from mobilising most of their troops to invade by performing hit-and run attacks on the coast - hindering their ability to invade, and reducing the resources they could use - and forcing the Turks to either invade but risk losing cities on the coasts, or not invade, but maintain control of their coastal cities. With a strong navy, and an army that should be stronger (based on resources avaliable, if the Turks are united, then this isn't a good idea) they should be able to invade, overwhelm, and then the marines can take cities whenever the army forces a battle, and the army can trap the Turks in their cities when they won't. Hopefully this would lead to Turkish concessions on the coasts.

If that war is successful, and the Byzantines have the manpower, then a war to take Georgia and the Caucuses would be good for both expanding control over the Black Sea, and providing a long term northern border and combined with Trezbizond (and maybe provide a second base of operations in case of a war for the Anatolian Plateau). After a war with the Turks however, convincing them to become vassals with intimidation is probably a wiser choice.

A lot has to go right here obviously from war to war, but the big things that would help the Byzantines are

1) Successful Crusade of Varna, with Karaman working in Anatolia, and doing most of the work in the end
2) Bulgaria is given to the Byzantines, even if as a vassal state.
3) The effects of the crusade in Anatolia are civil war, disunity, and generally no Anatolian state to interfere with the Romans whilst they consolidate in Europe.

I worry though that I may underestimate the Serbians et al. After all, Skanderbeg is about in Albania,
 
Last edited:
Top