WI: The Byzantines get Teuton help against the Turks

Is it possible for the Teutonic Knights to help the Byzantines instead of pillaging the christianizing balts?
 
Is it possible for the Teutonic Knights to help the Byzantines instead of pillaging the christianizing balts?

Around what time Period. There is the problem of Eastern Rome being Orthodox to deal with.

But they could form a buffer state in Anatolia thought they would need to adjust their tactics to fight Nomadic Turks.
 
I would say yes possibly, but bigger question is whether the Byzantines would want their help? Probably not, cause they couldn't afford the rates the Teutonic Order would be charging, and the risks of having foreign ideologues wandering your lands isn't ideal.

The Teutonic Order might be willing to go for it, if it was before they already had their own state, since the partial goal of crusading in Prussia was training for the perceived real war in Jerusalem. A war in Anatolia fits that purposes just as well.

But again, it's the classic story with the Byzantine Empire and mercenaries. They hire western mercenaries to fight against an eastern threat, get angry when the mercenaries request land, refuse to compensate them, and then everyone tries to screw the other over.
 
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Didn´t they even ask the Golden Horde for help ?

Yeah, though not specifically against the Turks. The Horde were pretty useful as allies...not sure if the Teutons would be as useful. There's a lot of potential for religious conflict there.
 
Yeah, though not specifically against the Turks. The Horde were pretty useful as allies...not sure if the Teutons would be as useful. There's a lot of potential for religious conflict there.

This---the Order were notorious for, after establishing themselves against the pagan Balts, going after Orthodox Russians. The Battle on the Ice/Lake Peipus, which has been blown out of proportion since for propaganda purposes (it was in actuality a tiny engagement between maybe 10K combatants all told), was the most noteworthy battle between the Order and Novgorod, their other rival in the region, along with Gedidimid Lithuania.

I don't see the austere Order going to work for the ERE. They -barely- got along with the Hungarians, and even then they were kicked out for being too land-grabby.
 
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