Could the Emperor Julian have saved the Roman Empire? Alternate History.

[@Maiorianus_Sebastian]

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[@selfiekroos1777]

YOU HAVE WON GALILEAN 😥

[@ferea_896]

17:14 that’s way specific “let’s call him emilianos “ and Julian III

[@IndyDefense]

"Make Rome Great Again. No one loves Rome as much as me. Many people are saying this." - Julian

[@CaptainGrimes1]

Constantius II sleepy Constantius it's what I call him, he's not defending our borders he's letting these Goths in, they're rapists, they're murderers, it's so sad everybody tells me this

[@atlantic_love]

Grow up.

[@SpaceReptilioid]

Make Rome Pagan Again!

[@raydavison4288]

😅

[@worldhistorycultureposting]

I do believe he was one of those Emperors we were robbed of with the likes of Majorian, Aurelian, Maurice... etc

[@VanLightning900]

Interesting how you use the pronoun “we” 🤔

[@worldhistorycultureposting]

@@VanLightning900 how so?

[@twistedsteeltv6130]

​@@VanLightning900huh? What does that matter? 🤣

[@ldubt4494]

​@@VanLightning900we means humanity as a whole.

[@mojewjewjew4420]

thats delusional,he was incompetent and sick in the head.

[@aidanbarrett9313]

"Hello, my name is Julian. You killed my father. Prepare to die!" I wonder if Julian was a real-life inspiration for Inigo Montoya!

[@daguroswaldson257]

Jovian: Stop saying that!

[@Lp-army1]

My opinion he would have "saved" the empire during his lifetime, but after his death, it'd just decline again

[@TreiberSeptim]

Maybe. If he had had a good successor, they could have turned the corner.

[@Lp-army1]

@tiberseptim8434 true, but this is just my worst-case scenario opinion

[@Mr_OogaBooga]

Roman lore be like: Good emperor Good emepror die Bad emperor Decline Repeat

[@Lp-army1]

@Mr_OogaBooga what's worse is the good one dies due to some stupid reason, like he didn't pay his 1 cent to his commander while the bad emperor dies to something like old age or natural causes

[@jaylonhale5704]

@@Lp-army1yea I never understand that the good emperors literally shooting themselves in the foot by letting there guard down in a civilization with history of murdering emperors for dumbass reasons😭

[@julianhermanubis6800]

Julian was a man of great intelligence and ability and also a keen religious thinker and scholar, but he sometimes was unrealistic in his behavior and made some poor decisions. It's worthwhile reading Ammianus Marcellinus because he knew Julian well personally and had a high opinion of him overall but also is very honest about his shortcomings. Marcellinus was pagan and not a hostile source, like a lot of the early church writers. But he does give a well-rounded portrait of Julian.

[@keizervanenerc5180]

Nobody: Maiorianus: *IMAGINE*

[@TreiberSeptim]

Julian might have been the worst waste of potential since Aurelian.

[@flyingisaac2186]

The basic problem with Julian is that military capable Roman emperors like the legendary Trajan (conqueror of huge but mostly ephemeral conquests) and here Julian had fatal fascination with conquering Persia. Trajan provides a good example of where the conquests were successful, but even as Trajan was dying, fearsome rebellions had broken out prompting Hadrian to abandon them. If Julian had properly stuck with taking the capital Ctesiphon or invaded again successfully, the same issue that Trajan faced could've resulted. Also regarding religion, Egypt and much of the east, the wealthiest portion of the empire had diverged from imperial Christianity through Miaphysitism, and no Emperor could ever change that. Imperially sponsored Melkites would've faded with a pagan emperor or one who decided to cleave to Arianism (in some form, for it had many) or something close to Miaphysitism. This divergence of Christianity (between the capital and Miaphysite Egypt plus much of the East, eg Nestorianism) eased the conquests of Islam when local nobles and bishops had little interesting in dying for a persecuting and over taxing Roman Empire. Egyptian paganism had fallen into decay when during the Age of Crisis, Roman Emperors confiscated temple holdings. While the last temples of Upper Egypt remained open until Justinian (most kept open as Kushites and more southerly peoples of semi Egyptian culture worshipped there and that was often preferable to expensive warfare) and market minded monks could as ready to make pagan charms as Christian ones (or even mixed marking on charms) depending on the market, a pagan Julian and any pagan successors had to face the reality that Roman Africa, Egypt and much of the east were heavily Christian (divided yes, like Donatists and Catholics in Africa, but both utterly hostile to paganism, and also with substantial Jewish populations) and that any hostile policies could have seen a resumption of local breakaway Emperors (as seen during the Age of Crisis). Julian also expended a lot of effort to make pagan priests (hitherto local aristocratic amateurs) into socially aware equivalents of Christian bishops. Given the demands on the empire, that might have proven difficult to sustain. Also it was not only Christians who mocked Julian's mass animal sacrifices (calling him the butcher), but also pagans whose religion was diverging from old classical form. Thanks again for your so many excellent videos, and I hope this comment isn't too long.

[@mputilin]

The reason his talent was a wasted one was exactly the one that some celebrate him for. Paganism.

[@fourseasons_total_laptops]

@@mputilin and the xtians haven’t changed one bit.

[@spear1504]

If Alexander the Great survived longer than our timeline, do unknown cause. He would consolidating he new empire and secure every rebellion for he province rising up. He or he successor or family continue conquering maybe Central Asia, caucasus Mountains, Arabian coast and maybe western mediterranean of North Africa Illyria and maybe Italy whenever he or successor ever conquer they plan. But spread of Christianity not happen or delay because Jewish and Canaanite levant might been Hellenisation in this timeline Egypt from North Africa might remain pagan for long time I until modern think.

[@BillViall]

Thank you. I very much appreciate your efforts.

[@Maiorianus_Sebastian]

Thank you very much for your kind donation, I really appreciate it very much

[@viocastorulcalator5664]

Plus the most important. Julian's Persian campaign was inevitable. Persia had been attacking the empire for about 10 years without stopping, the answer was mandatory. The most important in the failure of the campaign was the betrayal of the secondary army and the Armenian king who did not make the move that was already classic in the strategy of the Roman campaigns in the east, where the attack through Mesopotamia was always supported by one through the Iranian plateau.

[@mikered1974]

Not Helping both the betrayers are Christians ie: (Roman Soldiers & Armenian King )who consider rightfully Julian is Apostate in Christianity, Emperor Julian Underestimated Christianity even by the time of Tetrachy Christianity has large adherents in Roman Empire already thats why Diocletian tried to Purge them because he saw they are potential achilles heel inside the Empire aswell why Constantine I aka" The Great " never loose in the Roman Civil War because by that point of period in the Roman empire Christians are joining bulky in the Roman Military & Political Bureaucracy aswell nearby Nations are converting in Christianity ie: Armenia in 301 AD become Christian Country , Aksum which becomes Ethopia later becomes Christian between 340-356 AD , Arab Tribes near both the Roman Empire & Persian Empire is already largely Christians by 300 AD , 2 scores of Berbers Kingdoms in Africa near the border of the Roman Empire became Christians kingdoms by 300 AD , Germanic Tribes near the Danube limes are already largely Converted in Christianity albeit in Arianism with the changing religious theme at the time being Pagan Roman Emperor is not ideally at the time even how Competent that Person are when literally everyone in Known Roman World view you a Apostate in there Religion & they have Divine Right to hurt Julian ie : Literally Julian has Million Knives pointed in his throat in everytime when he decided to turn against Christianity when he becomes Roman Emperor.

[@alessandrogini5283]

Yes,but the campaign was not enough preparered... basically Julian Lost due logistic

[@oscarstainton]

New subscriber here. This channel's focus on the Late Western Roman Empire is endlessly fascinating, and it's given new perspective on the traditional endpoint of Western Roman governance and influence.

[@mango2005]

The form of Paganism he was trying to introduce was very influenced by Christianity and would not have been necessarily fully approved of by Pagans. For example, he wanted to impose standards of moral behaviour on the Pagan priesthood. The old Pagan priesthood was not seen necessarily as having to be a role model for the laity, but the Christian ones were. He also wanted to introduce Pagan philanthropy as he knew that Christian charity appealed to the sick and poor. This was new for Paganism and Rome was a very class-ridden society where the elite might not have approved. He wasn't really a big persecutor, correctly understanding that this had strengthened Christianity in the past. He did ban Christians from teaching the classics though in order to erode their influence in education.

[@WorthlessWinner]

The form of Christianity that took off was basically just neoplatonism in pagan clothing

[@UncannyRicardo]

"He did ban Christians from teaching the classics though in order to erode their influence in education" Justinian payed the pagans back in such regards by banning them likewise

[@RoyalKnightVIII]

Well charity wasn't a Christian invention so while it wasn't common it wouldn't be utterly alien

[@kryzzan7039]

I honestly doubt any man could have saved the Roman Empire, all ancient empires were doomed to fall, some lasted longer than others, one of the biggest reasons for Rome's downfall was arguably the Scourge of God, Attila, who razed much of Europe, but more importantly pushed several groups of peoples, namely the Franks, Goths, Alemanni, Alans, early Slavs, Pannonian Avars, Bulgars and Magyars, and of course the Huns themselves Westward and Southward into the empire, but even if it wasn't for Attila I doubt Rome would have lasted much longer. Also find it ironic that the first king of Italy, Odoacer was probably partly or fully Germanic.

[@tophat762]

Definitely one of the best and most underrated emperors. His writings are very entertaining and pretty funny at times.

[@GnosticInformant]

I think about this question every day.

[@vonozelot8513]

This scenario feels like a fanfiction. Here are some points, which feel espeacialy unrealistic to me: 1. Afaik Julians style of paganism was very unpopular amongst the still pagan romans. While it's possible this pagan "church" could have gained a bigger following, if he had lived longer, I feel it's more realistic to assume that a pagan successor of Julian would have abandoned this style of paganism in favor of the more traditional paganism. With this lack of state support this pagan church would have likely colapsed like it did irl. 2. Why do you assume the pagan emperos would have been any more tolerant then Theodosius and others? Just as a reminder the last state sponsored persecution of christianity ended ca. 50 years before Julians death. I feel it's more realistic to assume Julian, who despised and discriminated christians, or one of his succsessors would have started another persecution of christians at some point, espeacialy if they felt politicaly secure enough to do so. Just because the pagans have the upper hand does not mean the religious strife of late antiquity does not occur. 3. Your points on the goths are weird. Why would Julian have been more succesful at integrating them in his empire? Roman integration of barbarians into their ranks always relied on the cooperation with the barbarian elites, because of this I don't believe he would have deposed the gothic kings. He would have more likely acted just like Theodosius and others after him in this regard. Another point is that the goths and several other germanic people at this point where at least in the process of christianization. Now you have a number of christian tribes in the empire and a relatively large at least discriminated christian minority of roman citizen. Too be fair most germans were Arian christians while at least in the western portion of the empire most christians where nicene christians, which could have hindered a cooperation of these groups, but this still sounds like a proverbial timebomb to me. (Admittedly this is the most speculative of my points) Sorry for the wall of text and my english. It's been years since the last time I wrote something more complex in english.

[@DingleBerry-jb4gj]

Your English is fine, there are native English speakers who don't write as well as you do. The only glaring error I see is in "Too be fair", It should be "To be fair". Also, what you wrote echoed what I was thinking while watching the video. I enjoy Maiorianus, but he clearly romanticizes paganism and has a bias towards it.

[@thomaswilson3827]

@@DingleBerry-jb4gjyeah I’ve noticed it as well. I also appreciate his work, but it definitely seems to follow a romanticized post-enlightenment view of Greco-Roman paganism that follows secular and tolerant reasoning compared to the superstitious, intolerant, and theocratic Christians. Plot twist: Pagan Roman religion played a heavy role in the state and they were very superstitious.

[@illastorrico6480]

Dear Maioruanus. Julian always has been and will be the great. I recommend the monographs of Harrel, J. “The Nisibis war” about the Julian’s campaign in the east. It was a much more successful campaign as it is considered by historians who only repeat the same mistakes without analysing the strategical plan. It was a very similar plan that Septimius Severus and Galerius executed, with a doble army attacking by two axes. My own research has included the Liddell Hart vision of indirect approach to the Julian’s Campaign, in a very fortified area. Heraclitus himself would try a much more risky and deep campaign and he has not received any critic by the military historians. Just he didn’t die meanwhile. Also, the roman soldiers revealed against Jovian and his generals because they didn’t want to cross the Tigris to could scape faster. Amianus tell us about that but modern historians judge instead understand. Was that coup that made the army loose a several time and made that Jovian had to follow the way that Sapor expected. Anyway I just want to say I am very fan of your work and agree with your historical vision and as a PhD researcher I feel surprise of even this kind of Chanel can exist. Thank you.

[@bodegacoast]

This was fascinating, well done!

[@socratesthecomedian]

I will watch any alternate history video you do. I love this. Thanks Maiorianus

[@benmiller3358]

You are one of my favorite creator on KZbin

[@GHST995]

Julianus should have heeded Daedalus's instructions, not to fly too close to the Sun.

[@haverofgoodopinions]

Thanks!

[@Maiorianus_Sebastian]

Thank you very much for your kind donation, I really appreciate it very much

[@ulfricsombrage]

The thing is Julian didn't declare war to Persia, empire was already at war with them. He just continued his work, after securing the border in the west, by trying to secure them in the east. The real mistake is he didn't took Ctesiphon (which is for me kind of a mystery; he had a huge fleet for supply, how is it possible he hadn't siege machines in these conditions, knowing from the beginning that he had to take Ctesiphon ?)

[@haditawbe9617]

Great video as always, thanks a lot!

[@aidanbarrett9313]

Have you ever read Gore Vidal's "Julian"? If so, what do you think of it?

[@heinzlilio4612]

On the topic of Roman Emperors a what if on Michael III would be interesting, the same guy that Basil murdered. Despite his shortcoming he succeeded in bringing the final Iconoclast period to an end, Christianized the Slavs most importantly Bulgaria, restored relations with the Pope and planned the invasions of Krete and Cyprus but got murdered by Basil in his bid for the throne. Imagine Michael III ruling for much longer

[@DISTurbedwaffle918]

I actually think that Julian's reforms doomed Paganism. The local cults suddnely becoming dependant on the central government was definitely not a long term solution to their demise, and likely accelerated it. The political and military stability aspects of his lengthened reign would be nice though.

[@Rynewulf]

Yeah the longterm viability of that plan relied on incoming aristocrats being Pagan and so the imperial government and army being dominated by Pagans, as was the case when Christianity was still new. Without Pagan heirs Julian's centralised government just cut the pursestrings he had just tied the Pagan temples up with

[@TheOneCalledSloth]

A good heir for Julian the Great would've been his close friend and cousin Procopius or his son Procopius II. The ancestors of the OTL western emperor and Platonic philosopher Anthemius.

[@diegonatan6301]

You could do an Alternate History about what would happen if Crispus, the oldest son of Constantine the Great wasn't executed by his father. We know little about him, but what we know is that he was quite capable as a military leader and much older than his siblings. I believe that if he was alive he could rein in his brothers and keep his extended family alive since he would probably participate in Constantine's plan of succession and they would not be such a threath to him as they were to his brothers.

[@losttreker9449]

Every time you make a "what if" video such as this, you create a paralel universe.

[@nathancrever5161]

Honestly, I would’ve had Julian relocate the capital back to Rome.

[@ankundamwebembezi6358]

It wasn't very strategically centred like constantinpole

[@sohailsayeed9361]

Thank you for sharing. Your channel is one my favorites. I appreciate your passion and you have sparked my own.

[@ryan0the0robb]

Yours is my favorite channel on YT

[@p1jos1s]

The invasion of Persia seems to me to be a good example of how the Romans underestimated the Barbarians. They found resources to attack Persia with 80k soldiers but were unable to defeat about 20k Goths close to its capital only 15 years later.

[@waqqas800]

It makes one ponder how many soldiers were in the field armies in the emperor's presence.

[@carlosfilho3402]

Congratulations On This Magnificent Vídeo.

[@danielangelcervantes1559]

I love your channel 😊

[@toledomarcos70]

There is a possibility that Julian could have changed his mind and married maybe he could have taken a Sassanid princess to at least a cooling down of the Roman Persian slug fest.

[@jackmack6217]

Great video!

[@anthonydefex]

nice story. Yeah, Julian messed up. So much wasted potential. He should have thought for himself, as he liked Marcus Aurelius very much, "what if invading Persia would be my assigning Commodus as my heir moment?"

[@lerneanlion]

To continue this timeline, I can see the particular group of Christians eventually fled to Britannia, especially when the Roman troops have been pulled out from there. This will led to the eventual Christianization of England and Wales. After that, it will be all about one of these Christian leaders who led their people there to be appointed as either King or Consul. Whatever the title is, the appointed leader will have to consolidate the administration, choose the capital and fortify the Hadrian Walls to prevent the Picts from coming in. Coincidentally, this is also during the time when the Angles, the Saxons and Jutes also beginning to come into Britannia as well. Sure, there will be skirmishes and battles there and there. But by learning from the Romans, the Celtic Christians possessed unity and the desire to defend their new homeland from the invaders. And so, victories might be possible for them. Of course, this won't be the end of the Anglo-Saxon invasions of Britannia and they will keep coming back. But to the Roman Empire, this is a good news because the Celtic Christians are preoccupied with fighting against the Angles, the Saxons and the Jutes at the moment. This given them enough time to deal with their own problems without worry from the outside interferences. Also, it may be possible that one of these alternate Roman Emperors may actually decided to prolong this status quo as long as possible by dispatching envoys to negotiate with the tribes that live in Scandinavia, particularly those in Denmark. Through the contacts with the Roman Empire, these tribes begin to develop their own villages into city-states and with the encouragement from the Roman Empire, begin to fight against the Celtic Christians of Britannia and even each other for supremacy and expansion. If anyone can continue after this, please do. Because this is as far as I can think of at the moment. But I will see if I can think of more since I have yet to reach the time of Prophet Muhammad and the rise of Islam like at all.

[@CatastrophicDisease]

Christians would not have needed to flee under Julian's rule; he was not interested in forced conversions. His goal was not re-hash of 1st and 2nd century Hellenistic practices, but rather the promotion of a reformed philosophical and religious system that arose out of Neoplatonism and was influenced by early Christian philosophers. The Hellenism of the 3rd-4th century was far more Monistic and less polytheistic than what preceded it - very similar to how Hinduism post-Shankaracharya was distinct from the Vedic Brahmanism that preceded it.

[@lerneanlion]

@@CatastrophicDisease I know. But since civil wars and military coups were the norm of the Roman Empire in our world, this world won't be so much different. If the radical Christian Emperors can come to powers, the same can also be said about the the Pagan Emperors as well if they are felt threatened by the Christian sects, especially when they launched their own rebellions and civil wars. However, the fact that the Roman Empire left Britannia will made definitely be the opportunity for at least one of these Christian sects to escape and form their own state. And the best part is that they needed to actually taken over someone's administration whatsoever. They simply come in and replace the Romans on Britannia while kept the administrative structure intact.

[@ACIron-en6ij]

This is another great "What if" along your Majorian one My man Julian not only restore Rome back to it glory days but got himself with the Frankish bodyguards In other words, he made proto-Vargarian guard before Basil II

[@scorpionfiresome3834]

Ironically, killing Julian created a chain of events that eventually led to the end of the Sassanid Empire. Had Julian lived long, Christianity would at best become one of the empire’s many cults, which means Islam as we know it today wouldn’t be the same, which in turn also means no Caliphate striking the weakened empires.

[@emZee1994]

Maiorianus have you read "The Ancient City" by Numa Denis Fustel de Coulanges? Personally I think you would enjoy it, as it explains in detail what the day to day life was like for Pagans, and how certain religious ideas unintentionally handicapped Paganism against Christianity After reading that it made me realise that the only way to stop the fall of Rome would have been a religious reformation. The solution was less political and more theological

[@reeyees50]

Great video on this figure

[@TheUrobolos]

Julian was was in many ways both a neopagan and a veteropagan. His idea of radical reform of the pagan faith into a centralized universalistic faith like the Christian Church was met with hostility by the reactionary roman senators for the same reasons they disliked Christianity: they hated the idea of adopting a faith that put themselves on equal foots with the commoners, at least morally and in the afterlife. It was more of a class struggle than a religious struggle for them. And yet at the same time, he was hardcore into ancient pagan pratices that even among many pagans of his ages were considered antiquate and no longer socially acceptable, like animal sacrifices (he killed in one day hundreds of bull). So he adopted a weird paganism that was shared only with his close circle of young intellectual autismo philosophers. To succeed his reform would had needed a lot of prerequisites even if he lived a long life

[@saguntum-iberian-greekkons7014]

Was he criticized for killing 100 bulls in one day?

[@TheUrobolos]

​@@saguntum-iberian-greekkons7014 Ammianus Marcellinus, a pagan historian (but rather neutral on Cristianity) that knew him and was of rougly his same age, wrote that both pagans and christians of Antioch were irritated by his mass sacrifice of bulls in the city: the pagans not only for the excessive antiquarian bloodshed, but also because it was a pointless massive waste of cattle and of the public money used to buy them. He also potrayed Julian as a lunatic obsessed over prophecies, willingly ready to offer ungodly amount of gold to any self proclaimed mystic coming to his court to predict great glory to him. So he was flawed and far from being a perfect rational philosopher-king, altought he did had his merits.

[@saguntum-iberian-greekkons7014]

@@TheUrobolosOh I had no idea about this

[@arthur-yq4ic]

to be called the great you need more than just good intensions

[@DingleBerry-jb4gj]

You don't even need good intentions, really.

[@Ciech_mate]

It is so crazy how much coverage some parts of Roman history compared to other parts, the age of Augustus was done to death for me and I was bored of it by the time I was a teen tbh whereas late Roman history is never done in the mainstream

[@newavedave77]

To my understanding, Julian went to war abroad to stymie a religious civil war at home. While he was feted in the West of the Empire and in Athens, he was largely ridiculed and made miserable in Antioch. Other than resorting to tyranny, returning from Persia with recently victorious veteran Eastern army at his back, would have made his political domestic issues a lot more simple - assuming of course that he won, and didn't die on campaign... Meh. Been a while since I read his biography by Robert Browning. Remember it as being a dead good.

[@octaviolimon1681]

its is necessary to point up the damage of criitianism has caused, bravo!

[@Sigismund-von-Luxembourg]

Once the situation with the Huns is resolved I feel like this Roman Empire will finally conquer Germania once and for all.

[@NateTheGnat]

I wonder what may have happened if Marcus Aurelius had chosen someone other than Commodus for his successor.

[@mohammedsaysrashid3587]

It was an informative and wonderful historical coverage work about a great Julian emperor of Romanian Empire history. That fatal injury was a turning point against Roman Empire historical glory

[@DoumanAsh]

Only Aurelian could truly save us To be fair I also find Julian as great roman emperor, but I honestly think rather than his over-confidence, the problem was that he was too good for his time He was great emperor surrounded mostly by mediocre or outright traitorous men all the time I'm more than sure what you call over-confidence comes from the necessity to cover for weakness among other leading figures of the time

[@TheHistorian5]

Great video! Although I'm a Christian myself, I'm also a historian and the beginnings of Christianity after the Milan Edict is not to good, especially the theodosian rulling.

[@saguntum-iberian-greekkons7014]

Same for me. There were many Christian Roman Emperors that were very opened to Polytheists. But the radical ones, Theodosius, Constantine etc made them the norm (Christian Roman Emperor =bad radical thug)

[@AmericanImperium1776]

Can you do a what if Rome was able to keep the barbarians out of Italy and maintained a Unified Roman State?

[@grahamward3504]

Julian was the real philosopher emperor.

[@septimiusseverus343]

He was a rank amateur next to Marcus Aurelius. Who in turn was also more competent and grounded.

[@serek_heterogenizowany]

What a great channel.

[@vivekkaushik9508]

Adrien von ziegler music is transcendental.

[@davidpegno]

One of the most interesting emperors. The Gore Vidal book about him is very good.

[@promark5317]

Julian would've been an avid Redditor.

[@oreothewanderrer6107]

what if Justinian decided to invade Persia not Italy

[@Ravi9A]

Yes. Praise Sol.

[@thecolonelpridereview]

I enjoyed this alternative timeline greatly though my gut feeling is that it was overly optimistic.

[@wolfgangkranek376]

Excellent.

[@TWOCOWS1]

Julian "the Apostate" was quite a man, and wanted to copy Alexander the Great by invading Persia. Too bad he did not have the luck of Alexander, and lost his life. Had he not, he may have march all the way to India and become a new Alexander. But a Persian arrow finished him off, while another arrow only injured Alexander when he first engaged the Persians near Istanbul today

[@jaylonhale5704]

What if basil the second had a son who kept the good ruler ship of his father

[@RoyalKnightVIII]

I wish he has been able to stop Christianity from infecting the world. If only he had survived and set up mlre pagan governors and a pagan successor

[@FlaviusJuliusItalicus-vb5gx]

There's beautiful content by Schwerpunkt on the topic, I'd love to see you guys cooperate

[@keizervanenerc5180]

Chad Roman Paganism: Ah i see so you believe in a sky god, underworld god, water god, etc. Well even though we use different names and have different rituals for worship, we think there are enough simularities to repect each other and maybe slowly merge both believes together. Virgin Chistians: NOOOOO HOW DARE YOU INTERPRET THIS SINGULAR SENTENCE IN A 300 TIMES TRANSLATED ACCIENT BOOK IN ANOTHER WAY THAN ME YOU HERETIC

[@AmericanImperium1776]

I don’t know the Christian Eastern Roman Empire lasted another 1,000 years, far longer than pagan Rome.

[@brunomattos1130]

​@@AmericanImperium1776 weak and vassals of the arabs and turks. Submissive Christians

[@julianhermanubis6800]

​@@AmericanImperium1776 ​Byzantium after the Arab invasions was mostly this sad, truncated regional power. It definitely lacked the scope and power of the Roman Empire at its height. It just sort of scraped by for centuries, although it did survive.

[@AmericanImperium1776]

@@julianhermanubis6800 Okay, yeah they weren't the ultimate power power, but they did survive.

[@julianhermanubis6800]

​@@AmericanImperium1776 It just can't be compared to its prior status.

[@blitzkrieg2928]

Julian the chad merch when ?

[@brutusthebear9050]

Would there be a chance that Julian, seeing issues with the Imperial System (especially without an heir), would have attempted to restore the Republic system to any degree?

[@saguntum-iberian-greekkons7014]

Maiorianus I got several interesting questions that maybe or maybe you haven't thought about: I am sure one or several of them you would like *Hispania* -How Northern Hispania looked like in 500 AD? (similar type of what you did with Rome and Lutetia) -Did the Visigoths started to feel more Hispani each generations after the Edicts of Union and Conversion to Chalcedonian Chrisstianity? How was life in Late Roman Hispania compared to Rome? Did the people also suffered or tried to avoid miliatry service, how was the relations with the barbarian tribes? -Mention the Auxiliary: Cohors II Vasconum *Italia* -If Italy resisted the germanic barbarian invasions (heruli of odovacer, ostrogoths, lombards etc) would Latin had continue to remain the same of would it still have transformed bit by bit into what we call italian today? -What looked like the uniforms of the germanic kingdoms (Goths, Lombards) in Post Roman Europa? Same question for the Byzantine troops. -What if Belisarius did accepted the Western Roman Crown and made Italy his Empire? -Was the Duchy of Naples and Amalfi the truely last remnants of the Roman Empire ? (Both were in Italy, had Roman institutions, Roman names (Sergius, Marinus, Pucharius) and were semi independant like the Exarchate of Ravenna. What about Venice, who established itself with the similar laws of the early Roman republic?

[@papasanjay7525]

I love you videos

[@Jake_sebastian]

Julian in many aspects was similar to Buddha,born of a royal blood,attached to philosophy & assesment of prior ways of life & refining them as per evolving times, critique of cynics despite of admirer of their tradition & knowledge,promoter of evolutionary ideas of platonism,staunch civilizationalist & patron,admirer of nature & its processes. Glory to the king Helios & Mother of the Gods. May Devas(Gods) rejuvenate divine order of paganism.

[@Ronnet]

In short; what if Julian was not a flawed humanbeing like all of us but a stable character with flawless vision and strategic insights? I think you're now just writing your version of Dune set during the Roman Empire. This flawless antihero with a family tragedy background using religious fervor to unite the people as one and conquer the known world.

[@themightyavenger1023]

Such an underrated and interesting emperor, I still think it's sad that Christianity basically destroyed millennia of religious practices in the Ancient Mediterranean and replaced a *relativly* tolerant religious policy with an extremely intolerant one that eventually led to a bunch of pointless and destructive religious wars. Julian was one of the last people who tried to save that world. It always bugs when we I see Constantine/Byzantine fanboys bashing him. Also, "The Caesars" was actually a fun read lol

[@septimiusseverus343]

We bash Emperor Neckbeard because he's a glorified footnote. Good Caesar, terrible Augustus. His religious policies alienated pagans and Christians alike. His stupid and pointless war against Persia ended in disaster, with Rome losing all of Diocletian's gains. And he failed to sire an heir, ending his dynasty. Only Christophobes and Gibbonites like the guy. At least Constantius II and Valentinian I succeeded to a degree. Also, if you're looking for a _good_ philosopher emperor, try Marcus Aurelius.

[@UncannyRicardo]

@@septimiusseverus343 Indeed, these pagan romanophiles are coping here. On a side note, philosopher kings are overrated

[@robruss62]

Julian was t wrong to invade Persia. What made the difference between Julian being the Apostate and a Roman Edward III was getting killed at the battle of Samarra, at which Julian was heroically turning the tide when he was struck down. Like Edward, and later Henry V to some extent, he launched a grandiose invasion that had gone awry despite a promising beginning, but the enemy had pursued and attacked him. Had Julian lived to win a Roman Crecy or Agincourt (a victory as decisive as Satara or Nineveh), he'd have marched back to take Ctesiphon and knocked Persia out if the war, reannexing Mesopotamia and returning to Rome laden with treasure. His pagan revival likely fails but at the very least Persia is quiet for a decade or two, and Julian spends most of those years killing Goths, Vandals, Alemanni, Franks and Saxons. One thing for sure the victor of Strasbourg and ( had he lived) Samarra would have made Frigitern a footnote in Roman history

[@stephenlerner4757]

What do you think about the Gore Vidal novel on this subject?

[@Uncle_Fred]

Julian needed to have the foresight to solve Rome's flawed succession system. Basically, Julian needed some sort of proper written constitution, ideally one paired with a school system that acted as a means to promote the law to the aristocracy. In time, this education system should be expanded to instill the idea of a "Roman" nation to as many citizens as possible. Of course, it's completely unrealistic to expect Julian to do such things. These ideas to stabilize societies were centuries away. The best Julian could have reasonably done at the time might have been some sort of official document of meritocratic succession. If he was especially farsighted, maybe he could have expanded the idea of the state being a seperate entitity to its leader.

[@seangavingregory4367]

Really like this one..

[@saguntum-iberian-greekkons7014]

He was indeed to be nicknamed the great! His reforms and pride of Romaness would had make him part of the Great Heroes of Rome

[@lafayettemoreira4423]

Had he lived enough, yes.

[@flaviushonoriusemperorofro3903]

I WAS NEVER AN INCOPETENT SON DAMN IT........

[@FieldHoodGaming]

What if Constantine the 3rd didnt leave Britain, and rulef Gaul and the Island from there? He could have been a great buffer to stop the Saxons, and other German tribes from invading the Empire.

[@ironiccookies2320]

What if Constantine didn't issue the Edict of Milan? I've heard numerous scholars and historians say that Christianity played a part in Rome's demise because it's not a syncretism religion like Roman paganism, and Romans tend to incorporate a lot of foreign cultures into their own

[@bogdancirovic1217]

Hey, I have an idea: What if Bellasarius restored the Western Roman empire? P.S. I tried to search for this topic, but couldn't find anything. So, I thought who could've done it better than you. :)

[@astrobullivant5908]

Julian could have also changed Greco-Roman Paganism to make it more compatible with Christianity.

[@chakraborty1989]

Indeed, he probably did what Hinduism did to tackle Buddhism. Make Budha a reincarnation of God Vishnu and took many of its teaching and lessons to "reform" itself

[@CatastrophicDisease]

@@chakraborty1989 This is exactly correct. The Hellenic religion during the 3rd and 4th century arose out of Neoplatonism and influence from early Christian philosophers; had it regained a foothold, it would have resembled Hinduism post-Shankaracharya - more Monistic and mystical, less explicitly polytheistic.

[@Indo-Aryan9644]

​​@@chakraborty1989 "Took many of its Teaching and lessons" - My guy those already existed in Hinduism even before Buddha was born😂🙏 (read Vedās and Upnishad) (but yes "Hinduism" did reform it self)

[@тлхит]

Why Romans just focus on defending Italy and leave other provinces like they do with Britania?

[@saguntum-iberian-greekkons7014]

Haha, like to do in attila total war?

[@тлхит]

@@saguntum-iberian-greekkons7014 yeah))

[@tomosjackson4760]

Why would the conquest of Persia make Christians accept him? Perhaps the conversion of it would, but the capture would be neither here nor there I don't think. It would, however, make their detraction of Julian more unpopular with the masses.

[@alinaanto]

Oh, if only! I always thought that splitting the Roman Empire into West and East was what allowed not only the invasions and devastations from the north, but also the Muslim invasion and conquest of North Africa. A unified Roman empire could have perhaps saved those people and our world would have indeed looked very different today

[@c.norbertneumann4986]

sehr interessant

[@carlosfilho3402]

There Were Two Other Emperors Called Julian Didius Julian And Usurper Julian in The Third Century.

[@antediluvian2380]

Very interesting, it would have been a better world I think.

[@CatastrophicDisease]

This is good content as always and about an inspiring figure, but please for the love of god enough with the AI generated images. They are often historically inaccurate in terms of material culture, and more importantly they are IP-theft. Either use work done by humans or pay an artist to make something new.

[@me-ds2il]

Well, you know the Catholic's replaced the many "God's" (which are actually the many aspects of the one God) with 10's of thousands of saints. In early Christianity, the proposed government of a united universal Christendom represented by five patriarchal sees, or centers of Christian authority in Antioch, Alexandria, Constantinople, Jerusalem and Rome (a Pentarchy). But then came Charlemagne and threw the whole thing off balance by making the Bishop of Rome the boss of bosses. And they've been trying to take over the world since then. Ruling every minutia of everyone's life from now until forever. I mean it's like everything you do, you need to check with the church first to make sure you're not breaking any rules

[@houbertcanitio2199]

But sainthood is not a greco roman paganism idea, it was in the scripture of the old testament and new. Just look at the Psalms and you see council of gods

[@fourseasons_total_laptops]

@@houbertcanitio2199 and the new and old testament were based on Greco Roman ideas, stories and myths.

[@BillMcHale]

Interesting, but this falls too closely to the great man theory of history. Did Constantine become Christian because of a perceived vision? Or because he recognized how popular Christianity was becoming, especially in the army and despite your earlier claim, even in the West? By Julian, Armenia had converted... and really it was by his time mostly a debate in Christianity between Arianism and Trinitarianism. I also question about whether or not, the Pagan Romans would have accepted the reforms he proposed?

[@DingleBerry-jb4gj]

I was under the impression that the army was (by and large) a bastion of conservative paganism?

[@Hansen1918]

this seems very biased, it sounds like according to you nearly all the woes of the Roman empire all came from the rise of christianity.

[@sacredsteeler]

That's why he's begging for money

[@svon1]

most late roman disasters can really be summed up by "its the Christians fault"

[@dionisiodussart5629]

You're right. Someday a book has to be published on this.

[@DavidTh2]

Julian gets way too much credit. If he did the same things he did and was Christian (excluding the religious stuff obviously) or if he was a pagan before the unofficial adoption of Christianity, he wouldn't be considered anything special. The Persian expedition was as much a mistake as Adrianople, but whereas Adrianople was probably not an avoidable in one form or another, war with Persia probably could have been avoided. I also doubt there was any restoring the "republic" as the Empire was too big and too complicated to be governed like a modern state which has the benefits of modern communications, institutions, and technology. Most of the problems of army recruitment and political instability dated from the late republic and at this point it was only the case of earlier trends coming to their final completion. Also, paganism was very fractured and not an organized force at this point. Julian's reforms would have been equivalent to inventing a religion and it would have been almost as difficult as starting anew. Most "pagan" Romans were not like the "pagan" Romans of the early or mid-Republic.