Flavius Belisarius was one of the great military leaders of the Eastern Roman/Byzantine empire. However, by the time he was really hitting his stride in in late 530's, the Western Empire was all but destroyed, and its former territory was a playground for various "barbarian" kingdoms, notably the Ostrogoths. This was obviously a threat and an embarrassment to what remained of the empire. In 535, at the behest of Eastern Emperor Justinian, Belisarius headed west and took the fight to the Ostrogoths.
He was highly effective and much beloved by his troops. (Which always made Justinian and his highly-vocal wife Theodora a little wary). By 540, Bel had retaken Rome, Naples, Milan and even the Gothic capital of Ravenna. After the capture of their king, the reeling Ostrogoths made a very surprising move; offering to make Belisarius the Western Emperor. He turned it down, kept fighting but was soon recalled by the now very skeptical Justinian. Bel would lead armies again, but the royal family was now too scared of him to ever get off his back. His career and personal life decayed and he died in humiliation.
My question is, how would history change if he took the Goth offer and accepted the crown? Granted, one man is not going to entirely reverse the collapse of the West, but a very effective leader with several legions behind him and the nominal support of the powerful Ostrogoth could have made some serious waves. I'm considering this with an idea towards a timeline; any ideas?
He was highly effective and much beloved by his troops. (Which always made Justinian and his highly-vocal wife Theodora a little wary). By 540, Bel had retaken Rome, Naples, Milan and even the Gothic capital of Ravenna. After the capture of their king, the reeling Ostrogoths made a very surprising move; offering to make Belisarius the Western Emperor. He turned it down, kept fighting but was soon recalled by the now very skeptical Justinian. Bel would lead armies again, but the royal family was now too scared of him to ever get off his back. His career and personal life decayed and he died in humiliation.
My question is, how would history change if he took the Goth offer and accepted the crown? Granted, one man is not going to entirely reverse the collapse of the West, but a very effective leader with several legions behind him and the nominal support of the powerful Ostrogoth could have made some serious waves. I'm considering this with an idea towards a timeline; any ideas?