Hello, friends, in this thread we'll deal with obscure or lesser known Historical persons that you think would deserve a focus from a dedicated ATL. I'm talking about those guys that either failed or died before devising a project that would change something (about their country or even the world), those that had a lot of potential for some interesting activity or career and never came to be. It can be a statesman, a military commander, a scientist, a writer, or anything else.
The premises are the following:
One of my favorite cases of disappearance in the sea:
* The Vivaldi Brothers = Vandino and Ugolino Vivaldi were two Genoese explorers who went on, in the late 13th Century, in the first Atlantic voyage (beyond the Strait of Gibraltar) since the fall of the Roman Empire, to sail around the African coast. They never returned, but rumors abounded about their survival until the next century, and, much later, it were the Portuguese and the Spaniards who attempted the later voyages beyond the Atlantic. Now, Medieval naval technology perhaps might not have allowed the discoveries that happened in the 15th Century, but its possible that a more successful expedition would have at least stimulated new voyages during the 14th Century, instead of the 16th Century. With the right divergences, we could see the Age of Discovery anticipated by almost two centuries.
In this forum there is a defunct TL that deals with this exact PoD, but, alas, it didn't last. I'd like to see someone renew this effort
The premises are the following:
- Before 1900, for obvious reasons;
- It must be an obscure or lesser known individual. Granted, this is extremely relative, as there might be individuals generally known in some country and unknown in others, and vice-versa, and more historically knowledgeable persons might know about individuals anyone knows. What I want to avoid, however, is anyone saying the likes of "Well, I think Alexander the Great had a lot of potential, what could have been if he lived some more years?". We are not talking about people who left their imprint throught centuries, but rather the exact opposite;
- If you pick the challenge, you have to explain in a short paragraph why exactly you think a TL focusing on this person could have a greater impact in this region/nation, field of activity or even world's History.
- It must be someone whose Historicity is proven. Let's forget about ancient or mythical characters, even if they might have been based on unknown historical individuals (King Arthur, Agammenon, etc.). I want to avoid a debate regarding the existence of the proposed character.
One of my favorite cases of disappearance in the sea:
* The Vivaldi Brothers = Vandino and Ugolino Vivaldi were two Genoese explorers who went on, in the late 13th Century, in the first Atlantic voyage (beyond the Strait of Gibraltar) since the fall of the Roman Empire, to sail around the African coast. They never returned, but rumors abounded about their survival until the next century, and, much later, it were the Portuguese and the Spaniards who attempted the later voyages beyond the Atlantic. Now, Medieval naval technology perhaps might not have allowed the discoveries that happened in the 15th Century, but its possible that a more successful expedition would have at least stimulated new voyages during the 14th Century, instead of the 16th Century. With the right divergences, we could see the Age of Discovery anticipated by almost two centuries.
In this forum there is a defunct TL that deals with this exact PoD, but, alas, it didn't last. I'd like to see someone renew this effort