AHC/WI: Byzantine Empire Holds on To Egypt

With a POD during after Heraclius takes the throne, your challenge is to get the Byzantine Empire to still hold on to Egypt (the muslim invasions still have to happen). What would be the wider implications of this also, and what POD can make it happen?
 
Victory on the Yarmouk is the obvious POD. The implications are not huge for Egypt itself (which operated more or less without change until Abd al-Malik), but very large for the ERE. You might see the grain dole restored to Constantinople, and the Empire's richest province will remain comfortably held. There'll be religious tensions, as ever, but I can't see these ever boiling out into any kind of serious revolt- it's very much in the interests of the landowning aristocracy and even the lower gentry to stick with the Empire.
 
It is correct the POD is Yarmuk.

However, I see Egypt as predominantly Christian instead of Islam. I also see a far richer and more stable ERE able to withstand the internal problems and external invasions.

This timeline would have greater possiblity that ERE would probably last until the 20th Century.
 
What effects would this have for the caliphate?

There won't be a Caliphate, probably- I would think that the Arab state is unlikely to stay together if it fails to thoroughly beat both Romans and Iranians. The same goes for Islam, which I think is unlikely to have existed as a proper "religion" at the time of the conquest of Egypt.
 

Deleted member 67076

With a POD during after Heraclius takes the throne, your challenge is to get the Byzantine Empire to still hold on to Egypt (the muslim invasions still have to happen). What would be the wider implications of this also, and what POD can make it happen?
Victory at Yarmouk or a POD that leads to Khalid Ibn Walid's death. My timeline did this exact thing.

The implication is that if you keep Egypt, the Byzantines still have access to a wealthy province and their breadbasket. Expect higher population and a richer empire and Christian Egypt in the long run. I don't expect the province to revolt in the long run.
 
There won't be a Caliphate, probably- I would think that the Arab state is unlikely to stay together if it fails to thoroughly beat both Romans and Iranians. The same goes for Islam, which I think is unlikely to have existed as a proper "religion" at the time of the conquest of Egypt.

Hmmm, so Islam would be one of those things that just fades into the history books? Now that could be interesting.

I imagine the rest of North Africa would remain Christian as well. Could the Visigothic Kingdom survive or would it being Arian cause it's downfall still?
 

Deleted member 67076

Hmmm, so Islam would be one of those things that just fades into the history books? Now that could be interesting.

I imagine the rest of North Africa would remain Christian as well. Could the Visigothic Kingdom survive or would it being Arian cause it's downfall still?
Doubtful with Islam just disappearing. It depends on what happens next. If they Conquer Persia like OTL and keep moving eastward than it spreads eastward.

The Visigoths were already conquered by ERE. They've held Africa since Justinian, which would be 80 years by now.
 
Doubtful with Islam just disappearing. It depends on what happens next. If they Conquer Persia like OTL and keep moving eastward than it spreads eastward.

The Visigoths were already conquered by ERE. They've held Africa since Justinian, which would be 80 years by now.

The Visigoths were in Spain. You are thinking of the Vandals.
 

Deleted member 67076

The Visigoths were in Spain. You are thinking of the Vandals.
My bad. The Visigoths may or may not survive. It depends if the Franks want to invade or the Berbers do. My money is it will likely survive but its possible it won't.
 
Are we assuming that a victory @ Yarmouk stops the Arab Tide from moving into the ERE? Or is Syria still in danger? My bet would be that if they are defeated @ Yarmouk the jihadists would leave the ERE alone and focus on Persia.

HoC
 

Deleted member 67076

Are we assuming that a victory @ Yarmouk stops the Arab Tide from moving into the ERE? Or is Syria still in danger? My bet would be that if they are defeated @ Yarmouk the jihadists would leave the ERE alone and focus on Persia.

HoC
It depends on how badly the damage is done at Yarmouk. If it was a decisive Byzantine victory and Khalid was killed, Umar will likely pull out the troops and make peace.
 
They wouldn't lose it in the first place.

Technically they were already losing chunks of it by the Arrival of Islam. The Vandals started a long series of destabilization of Roman rule in the region that saw increasing mobilization and automanization of the Berber communities throughout North Africa. By the time of Justinian the great city of Magnis Leptis was a shell of its former self and Byzantine control largely only fully extended along the coastline. The Visigoths kicking out the Byzantines from Hispania did not help either.

That is to say Byzantine rule in the region was largely dependent on maintaining a series of alliances and deals with the local Berber populations for nominal suzentry over the region. Piss off a important leader of one of these Romano-Berber Kingdoms and revolt was abound.
 
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