Western attitudes to a heterodox Christian "Ottoman Empire" analogue

Thande

Donor
Of course another important point that must be considered is whether this Nestorian state would block Western commerce to the East as the Ottomans did. If they don't, that could significantly delay the discovery (or at least the colonisation) of the Americas as there would be no incentive to round Africa or try sailing west to China.
 
I agree with what others have said: It would be completely different from with the Ottomans.
The terror the Ottomans inspired in Europe for centuries has a lot to do with the feeling of not understanding these people, and not being understood by them. This is not so much about language - if both sides want, language skills always spread. But a (at first sight) completely different religion made it hard for Europeans to find a clue to the Turkish mind (The Turks, however, had less problems to find something out about Europe (thanks to their Greek and Serbian subjects), and little desire to explain themselves). Of course, this is a very coarse and sketchy description.

Of course another important point that must be considered is whether this Nestorian state would block Western commerce to the East as the Ottomans did. If they don't, that could significantly delay the discovery (or at least the colonisation) of the Americas as there would be no incentive to round Africa or try sailing west to China.

Right. I can't easily imagine such an empire which closes itself so much against Europe. If it does, that would of course deepen the gap - seems like an interesting scenario.
 

Keenir

Banned
Right. I can't easily imagine such an empire which closes itself so much against Europe. If it does, that would of course deepen the gap - seems like an interesting scenario.

it's not that the Ottomans closed themselves against their fellow Europeans....it's that the Italians and Spanish (and English etc) were pissed that the Ottomans were making money off being the middlemen (yet those same other Europeans were eager to make money as the middlemen with the rounding of Africa and discovery of the Americas)
 
Of course another important point that must be considered is whether this Nestorian state would block Western commerce to the East as the Ottomans did. If they don't, that could significantly delay the discovery (or at least the colonisation) of the Americas as there would be no incentive to round Africa or try sailing west to China.

The Ottomans didn't block Western commerce to the East, they just controlled it for their own benefit. That wouldn't change if they were Christian. The attempt to get around them was an issue of control and profit, not blockage.
 
Thande, I think you've worked out how to create an Ottoman Byzantium! :eek::cool::D

Being Christian (even if they're heretics), they'd be more likely to be recognised as a Turkish dynasty ruling the ERE rather than a powerful infidel empire that captured Constantinople...
 
Just after conqueting Constantinople, Mehemet the conqueror received from Pope Pius XY (I do not remember the numeral, name was Enea Silvio Piccolomini) a proposal on the lines of: let's convert yourself to christ and I will crown you "Emperor of the Christians" (after all, he had conquered the "true" Roman Empire, so he could claim the title of Caesar by right of conquest).
The intriguing fact is that the pope was himself an almost-atheist politician and in his letter he highlined the many similarities between the two religions, and was proposing a de-facto blending.
I think his actual words were:
"Everyone knows of your rightousness, of your piety, of your god-fearing.
In order to become christian you just need to add some water".

On the other hand, after his refusal, the pope tried to organize a crusade against him
 
Would the possibility of an East-West Christian Union be greater with a Nestorian Ottoman Roman Empire?

Would the Nestorians even be seen as Christian in the first place? Since some Churches don't even recognise the LDS or JW Churches as Christian.
 
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