>be 6'5 swarthy Greek gorilla rapist built like a brick shithouse >heavy drinker with anger issues >considered one of the greatest generals of your age >spend your time conquering Italy >get dismissed from office because you physically beat up one of the emperor's DEI hires for being unable to follow simple orders >everything completely falls apart while you're away stabilize things>get sent back to save the province from total collapse >find out you're getting replaced by one of the emperor's friends who has 0 military experience (again)>decide you're done with the politics of this sissified empire ruled by women and eunuchs >brutally torture the guy sent to replace you and the envoy, sending their heads back to Constantinople >at the same time cross over the Adriatic with your small garrison force and march on the capital >completely BTFO the much larger imperial army sent to stop you >right as the soldiers are hailing you emperor and half the enemy army is defecting to your side fall from your horse >apparently a piece of an arrow got lodged in your chest during the battle and became infected, thus killing you >enemy general sheepishly walks back in, takes your head to display in Constantinople and claims victory >soldiers who defected forced into brigandry What if he won? What would the Georgios Maniakes emperorship have looked like?Imagine what he'd have done to Zoe and Theodora.
>>18737729His powerbase was in Italy so i doubt be would had do what byzos of his time with knowledge of the future should had done to save their civilization (fortify Anatolia and do everything they could to convince Turks to invade Egypt instead of Anatolia as Alp Aslan initially planned)
>>18737736Nah, Byzantine politics show that if you win Constantinople and its population over, you pretty much have free reign to do whatever.Worse case is Byzantines get a repeat of Nikephoros "White Death of the Saracens". Great general, bad at politics with eventual assassination from inner circle
>>18737736>>18738251I think he would've been a disaster bigger than what happened historically desu. The people of Constantinople were in love with the Macedonian daughters, the aristocracy completely hated the fucker and he had 0 mind for diplomacy of any sort so best case scenario he is assasinated quickly and forgotten about - worst case scenario he completely blows the realm up.
>Michael Psellos, who saw Maniakes in person and provides one of the most detailed accounts in his Chronographia, portrays him fighting at the front of his troops. He notes Maniakes’ “uncontrollable vehemence and the blows he delivered with his own hand” stating that he fought ahead of his ranks in the most dangerous position and that those wounded by his sword were almost cut in two (or lost even more of their body).
>A later poetic source elaborates vividly: Maniakes “struck in all directions, and killed men with a single blow,” crushing skulls, splitting brows with his sword, and inserting the blade into opponents’ heads so that “the crown of his head suddenly fell on the ground.”
