WI Reme (Latin capital established by Remus instead of Romulus)

What do I mean by Reme? Aren't Romulus and Remus mythical? Well, most likely yes, but every myth has a sliver of truth to it. There is a part of the Roman foundation myth regarding the location of the city. Romulus wanted to build it on the more defensively positioned Palatine hill, as he valued military success and thought the city should be well fortified. Remus wanted to build it on the Aventine hill near the Tiber to allow easy access for merchants. Romulus won the argument.

Now, while the two brothers may be mythical, the dispute over where to center the government was probably real. It could have been that when the Tiber tribes unified, a merchant faction and a warrior faction argued over where to put their government buildings or meeting places. It may have been two different tribes vying to unify the area that would become Rome OTL, but either way, there was a dispute between a mercantile focus and a martial one.

So what I mean by Reme here his a city established on the Aventine hill, which emphasizes trade more than military might. A latin merchant city, which may end up a lot like Carthage. And the question is, how does this change history (obviously quite drastically)?

Consider how this changes expansion, the balance of power, the spread of religions (like Christianity), etc.

I will not be using this for a TL, I'm just posting this question to try and get an r interesting discussion going, so if this scenario seems up your alley y'kow… feel free to write a TL, there won't be another one on the same topic competing for attention.
 
What do I mean by Reme? Aren't Romulus and Remus mythical? Well, most likely yes, but every myth has a sliver of truth to it. There is a part of the Roman foundation myth regarding the location of the city. Romulus wanted to build it on the more defensively positioned Palatine hill, as he valued military success and thought the city should be well fortified. Remus wanted to build it on the Aventine hill near the Tiber to allow easy access for merchants. Romulus won the argument.

Now, while the two brothers may be mythical, the dispute over where to center the government was probably real. It could have been that when the Tiber tribes unified, a merchant faction and a warrior faction argued over where to put their government buildings or meeting places. It may have been two different tribes vying to unify the area that would become Rome OTL, but either way, there was a dispute between a mercantile focus and a martial one.

So what I mean by Reme here his a city established on the Aventine hill, which emphasizes trade more than military might. A latin merchant city, which may end up a lot like Carthage. And the question is, how does this change history (obviously quite drastically)?

Consider how this changes expansion, the balance of power, the spread of religions (like Christianity), etc.

I will not be using this for a TL, I'm just posting this question to try and get an r interesting discussion going, so if this scenario seems up your alley y'kow… feel free to write a TL, there won't be another one on the same topic competing for attention.
A more mercantile Rome would probably still conquer Italy to secure the city, likely stopping at the Po Valley or Alps. Then I can see it competing with Carthage for Hispania.
 

jocay

Banned
A mercantile-minded Rome would seek to establish a port in Ostia or elsewhere nearby. And from there build colonies in Corsica and Sardinia. As others have stated, there would still a desire to consolidate territory in Italy to protect Rome itself but much of the expansion would certainly come from overseas.
 
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So this "Rome" seems to be closer to a Greek City state in outlook and stays that way, butterflies notwithstanding. Expansion of any kind, military or mercantile will create jealously, rivalry, and conflict. How the Reman state handles this is anyone's guess.
 
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