How much of Europe could be Muslim, realistically?

For the same reasons Rome couldn't conquer and hold the middle east, the empires of the middle east probably couldn't conquer and hold central and western Europe.

In addition to the strain on bureaucracy and administration, the simple fact is that all these empires are based on certain ruling economic and military principles. For the Romans it was heavy infantry. For the Middle East it was always cavalry, especially light cavalry. Once you get too far into the other guys territory everything is in there advantage.

Which is why most of the conflict regions have always been in and around the Mediterranean. The logistical and economic advantages of controlling the Med would allow someone to project force into the other guys backyard, but once you get too far from the sea your back to the problem of having an army and culture not built for the place your invading.

Sure, but in the same way that the regions of Europe that became Christian are in no way limited by the places controlled by the Romans, the same could occur with Islam; religious proselytization could extend Islamic influence far beyond the borders of the early caliphates. In 600 AD, Christianity still hasn't cemented itself beyond the Rhine-Danube frontier, and by 800 it's only extended to the Elbe. Even if Islam can't cement itself in the Frankish kingdom(s) and the British Isles, conversion by the Russians and Khazars plus stagnating/eroding Frankish and Byzantine Empires could mean that it's Islam that catches on in pagan Eastern and Northern Europe. Over a period of centuries, Italy could eventually land in the hands of Islamic rulers, potentially leaving only the lands north of the Alps and the Pyrenees and west of the Elbe with a solid Christian majority.
 

tenthring

Banned
Sure, but in the same way that the regions of Europe that became Christian are in no way limited by the places controlled by the Romans, the same could occur with Islam; religious proselytization could extend Islamic influence far beyond the borders of the early caliphates. In 600 AD, Christianity still hasn't cemented itself beyond the Rhine-Danube frontier, and by 800 it's only extended to the Elbe. Even if Islam can't cement itself in the Frankish kingdom(s) and the British Isles, conversion by the Russians and Khazars plus stagnating/eroding Frankish and Byzantine Empires could mean that it's Islam that catches on in pagan Eastern and Northern Europe. Over a period of centuries, Italy could eventually land in the hands of Islamic rulers, potentially leaving only the lands north of the Alps and the Pyrenees and west of the Elbe with a solid Christian majority.

BTW, you still have to remember the hasheesh/vodka line.
 
BTW, you still have to remember the hasheesh/vodka line.

It's a glib line and story, but especially if Christianity had suffered several major setbacks around the time Vladimir (or whoever would be doing the converting ITTL) was choosing which religion to follow, it's not at all implausible for Islam to have won out. If Constantinople falls (whether figuratively or literally), he's liable to be much less impressed with whatever their missionaries show him; conversely the issue of alcohol could be overlooked in a "don't ask, don't tell" fashion.
 
It's a glib line and story, but especially if Christianity had suffered several major setbacks around the time Vladimir
With an Arabo-Islamic dominance on Anatolia and north of Caucasus, I doubt you'd even end with one big eastern slavic entity. More likely an islamised western turkic dominance (Khazars, Bulgars, etc.).

With Constantinople being largely on the decline, the trade road would, after all, likely remain focused on Volga/Iraq

conversely the issue of alcohol could be overlooked in a "don't ask, don't tell" fashion.
That never represented any kind of problem for the Islamisation of Mediterranean basin, anyway.
 
IOTL, the Umayyads took over almost all of Iberia, but a small Christian state survived in the north, and went on to reconquer all of Iberia.

The PoD may be as simple as having the Umayyads focus a bit more on Iberia, and take all of it. That way, the Christians would have to reconquer it from Gaul, through the Pyrenees. This would be difficult.

Let's say all of Iberia is taken by the Umayyads, and the Emirate of Qurtuba declares its independence, as in OTL, covering all of Iberia.

Qurtuba spends the next few centuries not having to worry about Christian invaders much, and can spend their time reforming and adapting to the European geography; they will be much more prosperous than in OTL.

The result may be that, by 1000 AD or so, there's a powerful emirate or caliphate covering Iberia, that's well-positioned to conquer much of Europe.
 
IOTL, the Umayyads took over almost all of Iberia, but a small Christian state survived in the north, and went on to reconquer all of Iberia.

Thing is, they most probably controlled it. It's not like Arabo-Berbers didn't raided and campaigned in the Cantabrian highlands historically : Musa ibn Nusaïr, the first wali of muslim Spain went east to west up to Lugo.

Eventually, the Northern regions passed trough treaties with the newcomers , Tudmir ibn Godo/Theodomir of Murcia was far from being the only Christian noble acknowledging Arabic suzerainty (this is an incomplete map of such regions), and it's extremely likely that the Cantabrians (including the ducal line, that formed a large part of the Asturian royal line eventually), Asturians and Galician nobles did so.

See, Arabo-Berbers had nor the force, nor the interest occupying directly all the peninsula, especially a relatively poor region compared to South or East. What happened is probably largely akin to what existed in Gothia Lunga (modern Languedoc and Catalonia) or Murcia, with this nobility revolting against the suzerainty from the wali/emir.

Not that having Arabo-Berbers crushing some of them would be unthinkable, far from it. But these getting crushed and ruled over by an emir (probably Berber as it happened in Pyreneans highlands, meaning that at the first mutiny or large scale revolt, wali's rule would be toasted) wouldn't really challenge the overall situation of northern Muslim Spain.
 
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