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Some "What Ifs" for your consideration

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PzLdr:
What if: Alexander makes peace with Darius, getting the Persian Empire up to the Euphrates, one of Darius' daughters in marriage, and an alliance [Parmenion urged him to do so]. Alexander had already declared Carthage his enemy. Would Alexander have then moved into the Western Mediterranean? There were Greek cites along the littoral, and on Sicily he would have wanted. And would Rome, the mother society of all western culture have survived?

Hannibal wins the Second Punic War, leaving Carthage, not Rome, the dominant power in the West.

Mongke Qua Quan doesn't die on campaign in Sung China, leaving his brother Hulegu with his whole Army for the invasion of Egypt, and the potential destruction of Muslim power in the Middle East.

The Emperor of Byzantium pays the artillery designer who built the guns Mahmet used to bring down the walls of Constantinople for the guns and his services [which were offered to Byzantium first].

English Major Patrick Ferguson forgets about chivalry, and kills, with his rifle, the American officer he sees riding across the river [or stream] from Ferguson's location, the officer being George Washington.

England declares war on the United States after the Trent Affair, allying with the Confederacy.

Anybody care to add to the list? Discuss the ones posted above?

Chieftain:
At the outbreak of the War of 1812, King George IV sees his chance to avenge his Father's legacy, and sends Lord Wellington to America to wipe out the last traces of the budding United States, impressing survivors into the British Navy and Army, which Wellington is building to take on Bonaparte in France.  As a result, what is left of the former colonies are annexed to the British Crown under the Canadian Government.

eh?  That would make our National Beverage Maple Syrup.........

 :whistle:

ABX:
Edward II decides not to engage Robert I in battle but instead, holds Sterling Castle and waits the Scots out, letting them retain the small tip of the UK as their own. The Scots would have a land but they wouldn't be able to raid Northern England and later Ireland. There is no Irish campaign by Edward Bruce, no second Scottish war for independence, no English civil war, and possibly no seeds of the American Revolution.

ABX:
What if Gerald Ford beat Carter?  The Shah of Iran is not over-thrown and instead, with the support of the US, crushes the Ayatollah. The Shah continues to nurture a westernized, liberalized quasi-democracy in Iran, creating a elected parliament and prime minister position.  They ally with Iraq and Turkey. They, instead of the Saudis, step in the power vacuum in Afghanistan after the Russians are pushed out and the Saudi radicals and their followers the Mujahidin have jailed never escape leaving the more secularized forces in power. The Taliban are outlawed or retreat into the mountains to live as isolated herdsman. Bin Laden does not see a revolution opportunity in Afghanistan and instead, keeps his focus on trying to over-throw the Saudi royal family, who subsequently, have him and his family killed.

EC:
What if James Forrestal had honeymooned somewhere other than Kyoto?

The entire nation of Japan would have gone into a berserk frenzy at the death of the emperor.

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