Although these events may seem implausible, all you need is a certain intangible spark in the past - call it fate or call it chance - to set off a chain of events that will unfold into an entirely different timeline. As you shall see, I will keep as close to reality as possible (no ASBs involved). Just a note - I may have made some minor errors regarding geography/the Hindu religion and apologize this in advance. And last but not least I've given a few pointers at the end but you can tackle this AHC/WI in any way you wish. So let's begin...
Background / OTL:
For 150 years, in the period just before Christianity when Armenia was still pagan, a little known fact is that a small community of Indian-heritage Hindus flourished. The Syrian writer Zenob Glak who was a disciple of St. Gregory (the patron saint of Armenia) explains that the Hindus of Armenia descended from two Hindu princes named Gissaneh and Demeter of Kanauj. These Hindus had fled to Armenia around 149 BCE after they were caught conspiring against King Dinakspall, and its believed they were welcomed by the Armenian King Valarsaces of (Pagan) Armenia and given the province of Taron (in western Armenia, now Turkey) to establish a Hindu colony there, and a new city called Veeshap. Glak witnessed these Armenian Hindus first-hand: “They worshipped images of brass, twelve cubits high” and “proceeded to install the Hindu Gods alongside the national Gods of the Armenians in the holy city of Ashtishat, famous for its temples.” Under the pagan rulers, this Hindu colony flourished for a remarkably long period of 150 years until Armenia converted to Christianity in 301 A.D.
IOTL relations between the Hindus and native Armenians soured when this small community rallied against the forces of Christianity that were beginning to convert Armenia. In fact, the Hindus resisted courageously and were even joined by a minor Pagan Armenian prince, however due to far smaller numbers they were eventually overwhelmed. During the years that followed the remaining Hindus simply fled the country or converted to Christianity and got absorbed into Armenian society.
Point of Divergence / ATL:
So for this AHC I don’t want you to get too pre-occupied with the how and why of Armenia's conversion to Hinduism. Let's just assume due to certain variables things unfolded differently and Hinduism made a much greater mark on the larger Armenian population than it does in OTL. Once things are set in motion, 150 years is long enough for Armenia to develop a uniquely indigenous Hindu culture that incorporates elements of the 'previous' religion within it...
By 301 AD when the first Christian armies arrive, Armenia is already a Hindu Kingdom and Hinduism the state religion. Successive Christian missions fail in their attempts to convert Armenia to Christianity. For the next millennia, Armenia’s neighbours gradually come to accept that this fierce Hindu outlier, a bizarre pagan throwback that shouldn't exist, is here to stay. The eventual Muslim Arab push northwards also fails to subjugate the Armenians and the same fate befalls the Turks and Persians.
Shut out from its neighbours by virtue of its unusual religion, Armenia begins to look southeastwards and forge links with Mata Hind (Mother India) which by now it developed a strong spiritual connection to. For a good 600 years there is a steady albeit small stream of Indian priests, sadhus, courtiers and princes travelling to Armenia to do yatra (pilgrimage) and vice versa. Various rulers of Persia, and local rulers, allow free and safe access in exchange for the payment of a small stipend. However the path to Armenia nonetheless remains fraught with danger for Indians, especially from brigands, robbers, and other unpleasant characters that may befall one on such a journey.
By now Ashtishat has gained a status within India as a fabled city, similar if not equal to other Indian holy cities. Its hundreds of temples and Hindu shrines attract many from far and wide. For the common Indian who'll never get to visit, Armenia becomes a byword for a mythical Shangri-La somewhere in the north, a Hindu Kingdom in the clouds, a place known for its great beauty and healing, its attractive people with light skin and Caucasian/Middle Eastern features.
By 800 AD, Hindu Armenia has gained a reputation of being an irrepressible warrior nation covering Anatolia and lands west of Persia. Stories of its valour and glory become intermingled in European Christian minds with ghastly tales of 'satanism and idol-worship.’ Europeans view them as a cursed race of people who owe their inexplicable existence to the Devil himself:
Liver of blaspheming Jew,
Gall of goat, and slips of yew
Silver'd in the moon's eclipse,
Nose of Turk and Armenian's lips,
Sacrificed in Ashtishat's nave
Finger of a cursed Hindoo babe
Make the gruel thick and slab:
Add thereto a tiger's chaudron,
For the ingredients of our cauldron
(From Shakespeare's Macbeth, c.1606)
Unlike the European, the Indian Sadhu's first encounter with Hayastan couldn't have been more different. It was one of enchantment, ecstasy and spiritual enrichment. By 1000 AD the common Armenian was well-versed in Sanskrit as well as the Armenian mother tongue, and many Sanskrit loan words had already crossed over into Armenian. The Hindu Indian visitor felt at home, and yet there was enough about this strange mysterious Kingdom to keep the mind stimulated. Many 'Universities' had also sprung up to propagate Hindu theological discourse and such places contained students from as far afield as Sri Lanka and Bali.
Hemachandra, the famous Hindu historian who visited the capital Diavan (Light of Van) in 1120 AD remarked:
"Upon entering this mighty capital one is met by dozens of golden Hindu temples and countless shrines thronging with devotees largely Diavani and from other Hayastani cities but a few from as far as Gujarat. The Hayastanis themselves are a proud Hindoo warrior race and many of the our Hindoo sects have made their home here, as well as others we are not familiar with. Their observance of their religion only differs in the incorporation of certain Hayastani schools which are not present in Gujarat and the surrounding lands. The Hayastanis are a proud race, strong and bold of a light skinned appearance, even the peasants who till the soil."
The Armenians themselves, in physical appearance, are very different to the Indians. The majority retain their Caucasian/Middle Eastern features, and light skin, and very little influence of the original Hindus is present. The Indian visitor also finds certain idiosyncrasies unique to Armenian Hinduism but most of it is familiar. By 1000 AD Lake Van is already known to Hindus in India as a sacred spot, a sort of Western Kailash - and most Indians are also aware of the holy temple city of Ashtishat. This cultural exchange also happens in reverse. The Armenians that make it to India for pilgrimage or more worldly reasons are welcomed warmly, some settling there as courtiers, merchants and military men.
But soon this unique period in Armenian-Indian history comes to an abrupt halt as Armenia succumbs to Mamluk expansion around 1370. The last king of Armenia, Rajanas IV, flees to India and this period of great cultural exchange with South Asia soon fades from living memory as generations pass.
From here on in, things begin once again to merge with OTL, with the difference being that the Armenians remain Hindu, and staunchly so, even though a negligible minority convert to Islam.
And as IOTL, eventually the Mamluks are replaced by the Persians to the East and Ottomans to the West. Armenia once again finds itself torn between between different powers as it has been for the past 200 years.
So here we…
Your Challenge is this:
With a starting point of 1640 (end of the Ottoman-Persian War), describe how things would pan out for the Armenians up to the modern day…
(A few pointers - you do not have to follow this but a few ideas...)
How would the relationship between the Ottomans and Armenian Hindus develop over time?
Considering that the Armenians IOTL were viewed as a ‘loyal nation’ for centuries by the Ottoman Turks (until circumstances changed), how would Armenians in the ATL be perceived?
Would the Armenians of the ATL have remained as loyal as the Christian Armenians in OTL? Would they have found any allies had they rebelled?
Would a Hindu Armenia ultimately weaken the Ottoman Empire and/or Persian Empire and somehow prevent the Ottoman Turks/Persians from consolidating their power/territories as successfully as in OTL?
What would the role of the Russian Empire be (assuming they still retain a desire to capture a warm water port)? If the Russians gain territory from the Ottomans as happened IOTL, how will Russia treat the Armenians?
How would the Western Powers view the Armenians if an 'Eastern Question' ever arises at some stage?
If any mass expulsion/mass killing of a million Armenians occurs in any point during the 200+ years of Ottoman rule, would there be the same ‘value’ afforded to it in the West as has been done IOTL (for example, nations like France, Greece, the Czech Republic and other nations criminalizing questioning the term ‘Genocide’)?
Would a ‘genocide debate’ even arise or would this event (no matter how large and brutal it was) simply disappear into oblivion?
And if we assume a mass killing DID occur at some point and the average European DOES have a vague understanding that something awful happened ‘somewhere in the East...’ how vociferous (and how successful) would modern day Armenians be in bringing this atrocity to light?
Thanks guys. Sorry if its a bit disjointed and I've presented a lot of questions to you, but I really look forward to your replies on this!