WI: A Western Sassanid Empire?

In the event that the Sassanids would have defeated the ERE in the early 7th century, could they have established a sort of 'Western Sassanid Empire' with see in Constantinople (once the city would have been cleared of Byzantines) or maybe they would have opted for the creation of Greek client states in the Aegean?

Are there historical documents about the intentions of the Sassanids in the case they would succeed conquering the ERE?
 
The Sassanids were arguably a lot more focused on their religion (Zoroastrianism) than previous dynasties. I can't really imagine that the Sassanids would be happy if their empire split with a Christian-dominated and largely populated west. All of their other Christian subjects would be conspiring against them to join the west.
 
I have difficulty seeing the Sassanids being able to hold Constantinople, Anatolia or any of the Balkans. I could see them being able to found an Empire in Syria and Egypt though.

The Sassanids saw religion through a political lens - so early on when they saw Christianity as the Roman religion, they sponsored Zoroastrian oppression. When Rome began to persecute Nestorian Christianity, then the Sassanids saw Nestorianism as being a good patriotic religion for Persians to be. Some even argue that by the end of the Sassanid period, Nestorianism was the majority religion, or at least the plurality religion.

Based on that, I could see the Sassanids forming a modus vivendi with the Syrian and Coptic Churches in an alliance against the "enemy" (spiritual or temporal) in Constantinople. Kinda similar to the way that the Arabs were seen as liberators when they conquered Egypt and Syria after Muhammad.

fasquardon
 
I agree with both you on the fact that the Sassanids would not promote a Sassanid 'West' (Anatolia-Greece-Balkans), but possibly just incorporate Syria and Egypt.

However, if they would manage to beat Constantinople, they would not lost the chance of scrapping the ERE and prevent it to rise later again. So maybe the creation of client states in the West (like Armenia was for a time) would have been the most realistic outcome?
 
I agree with both you on the fact that the Sassanids would not promote a Sassanid 'West' (Anatolia-Greece-Balkans), but possibly just incorporate Syria and Egypt.

If you ask me, Syria and Egypt would stay Sassanid longer if they were not incorporated - particularly Egypt. But alot of Persian empires have incorporated Syria, and I have a hard time seeing them resisting the temptation to this time around. It may even work if they manage to balance their patronage of the Nestorian and Syrian churches and not end up getting caught up supporting Nestorian attempts to convert Syria away from heresy.

So perhaps Syria would be incorporated into Persia, and the "western Sassanid empire" would be centered on Egypt and extend along the African coast with perhaps areas like Southern Spain and Sicily added at high points of the Empire?

fasquardon
 
If you ask me, Syria and Egypt would stay Sassanid longer if they were not incorporated - particularly Egypt. But alot of Persian empires have incorporated Syria, and I have a hard time seeing them resisting the temptation to this time around. It may even work if they manage to balance their patronage of the Nestorian and Syrian churches and not end up getting caught up supporting Nestorian attempts to convert Syria away from heresy.

So perhaps Syria would be incorporated into Persia, and the "western Sassanid empire" would be centered on Egypt and extend along the African coast with perhaps areas like Southern Spain and Sicily added at high points of the Empire?

fasquardon

Well, Syria provided Mesopotamia a direct and fast access to the Mediterranean Sea, so the incorporation, as other Persian kingdoms did, would be obvious based on both commerce and military strategy.

Egypt and Cirenaica could form a sort of client state, but incorporation is not unlikely though. Southern Spain and Sicily were out of reach for the Sassanids I think. If the ERE falls, Southern Spain will fall to the Visigothic Kingdom and Sicily to the eventual post-Byzantine Italian (or Carthaginian) states. As in the TL I'm actually planning, the western remnants of the ERE would join the Visigoths, seeking help for pushing the Longobards out of Italy.

Regarding religion, is it possible the creation of a Sassanid Church based on the heretic eastern churches and incorpoorating elements from Zoroastrianism? Maybe in a couple of centuries could evolve into a bizarre imperial Christian Church for all the Sassanid nations.
 
Egypt and Cirenaica could form a sort of client state, but incorporation is not unlikely though. Southern Spain and Sicily were out of reach for the Sassanids I think. If the ERE falls, Southern Spain will fall to the Visigothic Kingdom and Sicily to the eventual post-Byzantine Italian (or Carthaginian) states. As in the TL I'm actually planning, the western remnants of the ERE would join the Visigoths, seeking help for pushing the Longobards out of Italy.

I think if Egypt were directly ruled from Ctesiphon directly, Sicily and Southern Spain are certainly out of reach for the Sassanids. However, if Egypt were ruled by a junior branch of the dynasty as the "Western Sassanid" empire the OP asked for, then I can very well see them incorporating such areas. The junior dynasty would have ambitions of improving its status, and Egypt wouldn't have the problem of Persia of always being distracted by what the central asian nomads were doing.

I suspect such a Western Empire would try to claim the mantle of "Roman Empire" though, so the future history of such a timeline may see them as less "Persian" and more "Roman, that happened to have a Persian ruling class".

Regarding religion, is it possible the creation of a Sassanid Church based on the heretic eastern churches and incorpoorating elements from Zoroastrianism? Maybe in a couple of centuries could evolve into a bizarre imperial Christian Church for all the Sassanid nations.

Both Zoroastrianism and Christianity at this point were codified, organized churches with priesthoods that were zealous about rooting out heresy. I don't think it would be likely that they would merge very much. You might see popular saints and heroes venerated equally by both faiths (and possibly even with believers of different religions celebrating the saint's holy day in combined congregations) like the cult of St George in OTL, which was popular among Christians and Muslims. Any further merging would need a new Prophet to come and reveal "the next religion", which would have to compete with both Christianity and Zoroastrianism, no matter how much it was just a combination of the two.

Does anyone else think this would be a fascinating alternate world though? Two roman empires, one based in Constantinople, one based in Alexandria (or heck, even three is possible, the Franks could still end up forming the Holy Roman Empire) competing for the Mediterranean. A continuing Persian Empire that shared a dynasty with Egypt and was engaged in a (mostly) friendly rivalry with their cousins. A world without Islam, but with a strange new religion spreading out of Egypt instead...

fasquardon
 
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