WI: Liberators victorious

WI Brutus and Cassius win at Phillippi ?


Here's a scenario I envision regarding how that could happen:

Slightly different weather patterns lead to a messenger ship carrying the news of Admiral Ahenobarus' victory over the triumvir fleet in the Adriatic arriving in time to inform Brutus and Cassius.

Knowing that their enemy is trapped and all they have to do is wait, the Liberators army morale skyrockets, whereas Mark Anthony's and Octavians men become ever more desperate. With desertions and low morale plaguing their army, it's the two triumvirs that launch ill-fated attacks against fortified positions and eventually succumb to a counter-attack.

Mark Anthony is killed while Octavian tries to escape. Eventually he is caught up by the superior enemy cavalry at some fortified village. Knowing everything is otherwise lost, Octavian proposes a 1-on-1 duel with Brutus, which Brutus accepts since Octavian is just a sickly teenager and killing him personally would greatly enhance his popularity. The duel's outcome is a forgone conclusion.



I would expect the Liberators to march east, link up with their fleet and then land in Italy. But then what ? How would the Roman world develop, both short and long-term ? Would some sort of reformed republic emerge or would it descend into renewed civil war at the first possible chance and then increasing autocracy ?
 
Good POD.

In the long run, the whole issue about soldiers being loyal to their generals and not the Roman state is going to have to be dealt with or something like this might happen again.

After all, the previous generation saw Marius and Sulla and this generation saw Caesar and Pompey. The victory of the Liberators might simply delay some other general predominating everything as Caesar and later Augustus did.

Of course, our hypothetical Caesar 2.0 might not have Augustus's political skills, so even if he wins the war, winning the peace might be harder.
 
got back from vacation from the sunny island of Crete and remembered this thread. Maybe someone has some other ideas ?

I also found this quote from Brutus, which seems pretty interesting:

"I hold slavery and the sufferance of indignities in deeper loathing than all other misfortunes"


On a different note:

Might Marcus Brutus eventually become somewhat of a populares himself, if he were to see that the instability of the Republic required some urgent reforms if there was to be any chance of it being removed and peace and stability restored ? If he and Cassius get along (which they probably will), they have the clout to shape the Roman world in any direction of their choosing. But do they know how ? Or are they willing to ?


And also, what would the ideal solution to the republic's woes ? (disparity of wealth, power held by a small reactionary group, private armies, increasingly slave-driven economy in Italy with the free citizens crowding in Rome, a system of government designed for a city-state and not a large empire, lack of citizenship to the provincials). Btw, did I miss any reason for its fall ?
 
Brutus might have restored the Senate but i tend to believe that this restoration would be shortlived... Caesar showed the way of how the power is grasped through the personal loyalty of the army to a victorious General... Sooner or later another General/Senator etc. will try and make the same step towards absolute power... Alas the old days of the Republic were dead and gone by that time...
Plus for the Republic to continue you have to eliminate not only Caesar but Sulla too somehow...
 

Jokerang

Banned
I'm doing a TL of this POD myself, it got stuck in the after-1900 forum and no one bothered to move it yet. My scenario is the same as yours except that Marc Antony flees to Egypt while Octavian is left to pick up the pieces and sign a ceasefire, deviding up the Mediterian area.
 
Top