WI: Pragmatistic, Nestorian-Christian Mongol Empire

[GauchoBadger]

So, suppose Genghis Khan dies in his pre-adolescence, yet handwavium allows another clan to unify the mongols at about the same time frame, this time under Nestorian Christianity rather than Tengriism. Most of Mongolia's population converts, and they go on huge conquest sprees like OTL. However, also like OTL, they are mostly unwilling to sorrad their new faith, capitalizing on pragmatistic alliances with muslim states and so on.
Let's say these mongols take just as long to collapse into rivalling khanates. When they meet up with christian forces and states to the west of eurasia, p how different would be their diplomacy with them? Would they end up favouring the christian states over the muslims, over time? How would the crusader states, the byzantine empire, and the russians be affected? Would this give incentive to them toward invading Europe and declaring a new horde? Considering a pragmatistic yet still quite fervant christian khan, how would his different ambitions affect the mongol expansion?

 

[GauchoBadger]

Genghis Bump.

GauchoBadger

 

[CountPeter]

So, suppose Genghis Khan dies in his pre-adolescence, yet handwavium allows another clan to unify the mongols at about the same time frame, this time under Nestorian Christianity rather than Tengriism.

Well there is a lot of things to consider here already here.
So Genghis Khan's blood brother (and rival) Jamukha also almost united to the steppe tribes of the regions (wouldn't be Mongols, which really as an identity is down to Temujin). Unless you also remove him, it is going to be a long time untill we get a movement like the Mongols again, with no guarantee that Jamukha's aristocratic and non meritocratic/populist vision for his empire would have done nearly as well.

Also, Temujin did not unite the tribes under Tengriism. Genghis Khan has a great appreciation for religious plurality and by the time of uniting the tribes into the Mongols (nevermind beginning his world conquests) he was already in charge of a very religiously diverse people, including Buddhists, Christians and Muslims aside from the Pagan/Tengrii beleifs of his own.

Most of Mongolia's population converts, and they go on huge conquest sprees like OTL. However, also like OTL, they are mostly unwilling to sorrad their new faith, capitalizing on pragmatistic alliances with muslim states and so on.
Let's say these mongols take just as long to collapse into rivalling khanates. When they meet up with christian forces and states to the west of eurasia, p how different would be their diplomacy with them? Would they end up favouring the christian states over the muslims, over time? How would the crusader states, the byzantine empire, and the russians be affected? Would this give incentive to them toward invading Europe and declaring a new horde? Considering a pragmatistic yet still quite fervant christian khan, how would his different ambitions affect the mongol expansion?

I think this is the part where it is a tad difficult. It isn't easy outside of ASB to merely handwave Temujin and get something similar. Someone like Jamukha or any of the other competitors that Temujin had in his life had radically different ideas of what to do with their people.

 

[GauchoBadger]

so, it all depends on the mentality of the ruling khan?

 

[CountPeter]

so, it all depends on the mentality of the ruling khan?

In part.
The rise of the Mongols was one of those freak moments in history. An ex slave son of a captive kin slayer shaman chief who believes his God has told him all religions are valid because none have quite reached the truth was a really strange person to have appeared on the steppes, and yet Temujin's was the perfect kind of person to conquer the world.

To find anyone with a similar outlook is super unlikely. There were plenty of interesting tribes and potential for unity to come about (The Ongud for instance coming to power with their cheif Alakush could fit the base entirely) but being Aristocratic and being forced to violently convert the other tribes to the same religion would have resulted in so different a "Mongol" empire (in this case they would probably just be called the Ongud Khanate) that is in a much weaker position than OTL Genghis even before the conquests start, and with very different intents for conquest.

For instance, regarding the Jin/Jurchen of northern China. Genghis really went against the grain in attacking them, having been understood to be a vastly superior force to the steppes regions and their sovereign for quite a while. A weaker Steppes empire (say for instance one united unter Jamukha) is likely going to continue this tradition at first and leave the Jin.

 

[Zireael]

So, suppose Genghis Khan dies in his pre-adolescence, yet handwavium allows another clan to unify the mongols at about the same time frame, this time under Nestorian Christianity rather than Tengriism. Most of Mongolia's population converts, and they go on huge conquest sprees like OTL. However, also like OTL, they are mostly unwilling to sorrad their new faith, capitalizing on pragmatistic alliances with muslim states and so on.

How do you explain most of Mongolia's population converting? There was a Nestorian Orthodox khan IOTL (ruled very briefly because the rest of the populace didn't like his religious differences), Sartaq Khan