THE THIRD HITTITE EMPIRE, 300-400 AD

THE THIRD HITTITE EMPIRE

An Alternate History Timeline

by Robert Perkins

PART NINE: 300-400 AD

AN OVERVIEW OF THE HITTITE EMPIRE IN 300 AD: At this point, a brief survey
of the structure of the Hittite Empire, it's economy, and it's social development up to this
time, would be in order.
--Political Structure: The Hittite Empire is ruled by the Great King of Hatti. Originally
the Great King was simply the acknowledged leader of a league of Neo-Hittite city states,
but over time his power has increased to the point where he is no longer simply "first
among equals," but effectively an Emperor, ruling directly over all the other Hittite cities
and other provinces of the Empire. However, he is not an absolute ruler. The heads of
the old royal families of the old Hittite cities now form a Council of Twelve which
advises the King, and although they have little formal power, the Great King seldom
thinks of acting on important matters without first consulting them. Thus his power base
in the Hittite homelands is very secure. The provinces are ruled by Viceroys, usually
selected from the imperial family itself. In order to bind the provinces more tightly to the
Empire, the Great King maintains palaces at not only the imperial capital at Azatiwataya,
but also at Hattusas, Sardis, Damascus, Tyre, and Jerusalem, and he visits each of these
cities on a regular basis. The Great King or his Viceroys make annual sacrifices to the
local gods in each region, and the local regions are administered according to local law
and custom, except where the local law directly conflicts with Hittite law.
--Economy: The basis of the Hittite economy is agriculture and trade. The Hittites are
renowned as horse breeders (which allows them to have what may be the world's finest
cavalry), and their wise use of irrigation has allowed large grain harvests to be regularly
made in the empire. In addition, since acquiring Phoenicia, they have a monopoly over
the production of the so-called "Tyrian Purple" dye, which is in great demand throughout
the Mediterranean. The Hittites also have a long-standing alliance with the Himyarites of
southern Arabia, which means they get favorable prices on frankincense and myrrh from
that region, which they then export at a large profit. Although they no longer have a
monopoly in these products since the independence of Egypt, Kush, and Axum, they still
hold large share of the market. They also maintain an active trade with India along the
Pepper Route, and also are a major terminus of the Silk Road from China, from which
Chinese goods are shipped west to the ravenous markets of Rome. The revenues from
this trade have prevented the Hittites from falling onto the hard economic times
experienced by their Roman neighbors to the west, although the decline in Rome's
economic fortunes has, of course, impacted the volume of Hittite trade.
--Social structure. The traditional Hittite family was very patriarchal, and this has
influenced the structure of Hittite society from the earliest times. At the beginning of the
Third Hittite Empire, the common man of the Hittite Empire was a small farmer, who
farmed land as a tenant of the Great King, who owned all the land. Gradually, over time,
various Great Kings...usually as the result of rebellions, or to gain support during a crisis,
granted land ownership to different groups of people throughout the empire. By 300 AD,
almost all the land is privately owned, although the Great King maintains large estates for
his own use and income. This, along with the increasing importance of trade within the
empire, which has fueled the growth of an increasingly wealthy and powerful merchant
class, has created what we would call today a class of bourgeoisie in the Hittite Empire
which is steadily gaining influence. The bourgeoisie are often literate, and are readily
influenced by foreign ideas...including such Greek ideas as "democracy." Although they
have not formally broken the gates of political power as of yet, they are coming to realize
that they want to do so, and they on their way.

c. 300 AD--The Huns (the former Northern Hsiung Nu who had formerly plagued China,
but had been driven west beginning in the first century A.D.) settle in the region north of
the Caspian Sea. They begin to war with the Alans, a tribe related to the Sarmatians who
live in the region. Also at about this time, the stirrup is invented somewhere in northern
China.

c. 300 AD onward--The economic crisis faced by the Roman Republic continues
throughout this century, and indeed worsens. With the continuing erosion of it's tax base
caused by the economic crisis, the Republic finds it impossible to maintain the large
military forces needed to protect the empire and enforce the laws of the Republic, and the
army begins to actually shrink, even as the rebellions which began in 298 AD continue to flare up throughout the empire. As a result, the process of feudalization which began in
the last century...as powerful local landowners raise private armies for the protection of
their estates from roving brigands, and lesser landowners surrender their holdings to them
in return for protection...continues unabated, despite the law of Dictator Valerianus which
officially forbids such practices. Although the regular army is able to defeat the revolts by individual grandees by 330 AD, by 350 AD, the combined military strength of the
proto-feudal grandees will actually outnumber the regular army of the Republic. And the
generals of the regular army will also be seeking a place for themselves in this new order.
All this will have devastating results later on in the century.

c. 300 AD--Religious Developments.
--Christianity. By this point in history, Christians form approximately 20% of the total
population of the Roman Republic. The proportion varies by region, of course. In North
Africa, due largely to the fact that early Christian evangelists learned the Berber and
Punic languages, the population is over 75% Christian. The proportion of Christians in
the Balkans is about 30%. In the rest of the empire (the provinces of Italia, Germania,
Gallia, Hispania, Britannia, and Hibernia) the proportion is about 10%. Due to the effect
of several ecumenical councils held over the preceding century, Christianity in Rome is
now much more homogenous throughout the empire, and what could be considered an
"orthodox" Christianity has begun to establish itself. Competing sects are being
gradually suppressed by this "orthodox" majority. In the Hittite Empire (where Christians
now form about 30% of the total population), the opposite has occurred. The three main
sects existing in 200 AD have, a century later, given way to no less than nine.
Christianity is being suppressed in Persia, where the Zoroastrian Sassanian Kings are
trying to impose Zoroastrian orthodoxy on their population. In Egypt, Christianity is
beginning to be a major competitor for the old native Egyptian religion, as it offers the
same promise of life after death without requiring the expenses of mummification and the
construction of a tomb to house the mummy for all eternity. As a result, the Pharaohs
have made half-hearted attempts to suppress the religion there as well, with little success.
A similar story is being played out in Kush and Axum.
--Zoroastrianism and Mithraism: Zoroastrianism is being pushed along the road to
complete Orthodoxy by the Sassanid Kings of Persia. All other competing faiths are
being stamped out, including the offshoot of Zoroastrianism which had earlier been
favored by the Parthians, Mithraism. Mithraism is also losing ground elsewhere. While
in the last century it was developing as a major competitor of Christianity in the Hittite
and Roman Empires, this is no longer the case, and the number of adherents of Mithraism
is dropping as the numbers of Christians rise.
--Hinduism and Buddhism: In India, Hinduism is undergoing a renaissance in the wake of
the victory of the coalition of Hindu princes over the last of the Kushan Emperors in the
last century. The Puranas, a compendium of Hindu mythology, is being composed (it will
be completed about 350 AD), and competing sects, among them Buddhism, are being
stamped out. Hinduism will get a major boost when the Gupta dynasty emerges during
the coming century and will experience a period of missionary zeal, during which
Hinduism will spread into Southeast Asia and the Indonesian Archipelago. Gupta kings
will also try to spread Hinduism by the sword by warring against the Great Enemy...the
Zoroastrian Kings of Persia. Buddhism will be almost completely exterminated in India
during this period, but will continue to grow in other places (China, Korea, Japan,
Indonesia, Southeast Asia).
--Yahwism: The national religion of the Hebrews continues to flourish in Israel. In this
century, the ongoing conflict between the Temple Priests (Sadducees) and the Rabbis
(Pharisees) is finally resolved when the High Priest has a "revelation from God",
supported by the "miraculous" finding of a new "Book of the Law" in a cavern beneath
the Temple, which allows non-Levites to be ordained into the Priesthood. The
synagogues run by the Rabbis become, in effect, "Sub-Temples," where Rabbis are
authorized to perform all but the most sacred of rituals (including even some of the lesser
sacrificial rites). This has the effect of further cementing the orthodoxy promoted by the
Temple priesthood over the whole religion, and the teachings of certain Rabbis which
have appeared over the past couple of centuries promoting the idea that Yahweh is not
only the God of Israel, but the ONE TRUE GOD and GOD OVER THE ENTIRE
WORLD, are effectively suppressed. Yahwism will, therefore, remain henotheistic.
--The old pagan religions of the Hittites, Egyptians, Babylonians, Phoenicians, Greeks,
Romans, Germans and Celts are all in decline as they compete, increasingly
unsuccessfully, against Christianity. In some places...such as the Hittite Empire and
Egypt...the old religions try to adapt by merging with Christianity, adopting Mary and
Jesus into their pantheons as deities. In Hatti, for example, Mary comes to be identified
with the goddess Hebat, while Jesus is identified with her son, Telepinu. In Egypt, on the
other hand, Mary is identified with Isis and Jesus with Horus. Other religions also try to
find ways to adapt, usually not successfully.

c. 300 AD--Yamato clan rulers, claiming descent from Amaterasu Omikami, begin the
imperial dynasty that continues to occupy the throne of Japan today. At first they rule
only a small state on the Yamato Peninsula on the island of Honshu, but gradually, over
the next 200 years, will consolidate their rule over all of Japan.

300 AD--Prince Gupta of Magadha, who had lead the coalition of native Hindu princes
which destroyed the Eastern Kushan Empire in India, dies. He is succeeded by his son,
Ghatotkacha.

301 AD--Gaius Annius Anullinus is elected to a second term as Dictator of Rome.

302 AD--Shah Narses of Persia dies, and is succeeded by his son, who assumes the throne as Shah Hormizd II. The period of dynastic struggle which has lasted for the past several decades comes to an end, and
stability returns to Persia.

304-317 AD--Wu Hu Uprising in China and the Beginning of the Period of the Sixteen
Kingdoms. During the final years of the Han Dynasty, barbarian tribes from beyond the
Great Wall migrated into northern China, where they settled and became nominal subjects
of the Han Emperor. These became known collectively as the Wu Hu. During the Three
Kingdoms Period, this process continued, as years of war generated a severe shortage of
labor, which lead to the encouragement of immigration of Wu Hu herdsmen by the Wei
Kingdom, which controlled northern China. The Wei reluctantly yielded areas already
occupied to the Wu Hu and sometimes colonized war-uninhabited areas with some
weaker tribes of herdsmen. The relocated tribes adopted agriculture and contributed to the
revival of national prosperity, as well as serving as a ready source of mercenary troops for
the Wei armies. The Wu Hu, to a large extent, adopted Chinese culture, but they still
retained their identity as a separate people. When the Tsin Dynasty re-united China, they
continued the policy of the Wei and encouraged even more settlement by Wu Hu. But the
Tsin bureaucracy forgot the underlying threat posed by the Wu Hu, who now formed
more than half the population of northern China. The bloody battles of the War of the
Eight Princes lead to a great demand for more troops by all contenders, and not
surprisingly, Wu Hu mercenaries were often called upon. Finally, in 304 AD, the various
chieftains of the Wu Hu decided to stop fighting on behalf of the various Tsin pretenders
and to seize power for themselves instead. In 311 AD, the Emperor Huai Ti was captured
by the Wu Hu and the Tsin capital of Luoyang fell. The new Tsin Emperor, Min Ti,
established his court in Chang 'an, but his rule did not last long. In 317 AD, the Emperor
Min Ti was captured and executed by the Wu Hu, and the remnants of the Tsin court fled
southward to Jiankang (near present-day Nanjing). There the Tsin Dynasty would
continue to rule over south China. But in the north, the various Wu Hu tribes (and some
native Chinese dynasties as well) set up a plethora of small, competing kingdoms that
would be collectively known as the Sixteen Kingdoms (or Sixteen Dynasties). This near
collapse of central authority will persist in China for more than a century.

307 AD--The current Dictator of Rome, Gaius Annius Anullinus, is ineligible to run for
another term. The Senate selects Titus Flavius Posthumius Titianus as his successor.
Titianus recognizes the futility of trying to halt the process of feudalization which is
afflicting the Republic, and rescinds the unenforceable law of Valerianus forbidding the
formation of private armies by local grandees. Titianus also hopes that the defense of the
empire will also be strengthened, since the central government is no longer able to
maintain the large forces necessary to properly defend it.

309 AD--Shah Hormizd II of Persia dies, and is succeeded by his son, who reigns as Shah
Shapur II. When Hormizd died, Persian nobles killed one of his sons, blinded another and imprisoned the third. The crown was instead given to the unborn son of Hormizd and one of his concubines. Shapur was thus born king, and is quite possibly the only king in history to have been crown in utero...the crown being placed on the belly of his mother. Shapur will have a long and mostly successful reign. Under his rule, the collection of Zoroastrian writings known as the Avesta will be completed, heresy and apostasy within Zoroastrianism will be rooted out and punished, and Christianity will be persecuted. In addition, Shapur will succssfully preserve the empire from the incursions of the Red Huns and the Hindu Guptas, in addition to fighting an ultimately unsuccessful war with Hatti.

310 AD--A Hittite merchant named Suwarmis, returning from China, brings back two
innovations which he found there...paper making and stone-block printing. He sets up
shop in Hattusas, and initially sells his products to the Royal Library there.

312-320 AD--Naval war between Hatti and Egypt. Pharaoh Amonirdisu II of Egypt is
trying to take complete control of the sea routes in the Red Sea, thus gaining control over
the frankincense and myrrh trade from South Arabia and the trade in pepper and other
exotic items from India. The Hittites, who depend heavily on this trade (which, after
being cut off from the Egyptian and Axumite Red Sea ports in the last century, has been
revived from the port of Ezion Geber in the Gulf of Aqaba) for a lot of their revenues,
resist these efforts. Neither side declares actual war on the other, and the fighting is all
done at sea. In the end, the Hittites prevail, and the Egyptians give up their efforts to
dominate the Red Sea.

313 AD--Titus Flavius Posthumius Titianus is elected to a second term as Dictator of
Rome.

315 AD--King Hili I of Hatti has looked at his massive Royal Library in Hattusas, and he
sees major problems. In short, the multiplicity of different languages, scripts, and writing
media being used is making the library much less useful to the scholars in his empire than
it could be.

To illustrate these problems, the Hittite language itself is being written in at least three
different scripts by this time in history. Cuneiform writing is still used in the Hittite
homeland itself, alongside Hittite Hieroglyphics and a new alphabetic script, based on the
Greek and Phoenician alphabets, which is gradually phasing out the older scripts because
it is easier to learn and much more flexible in practice. And there are thousands upon
thousands of tablets and scrolls in the library written in other languages and
scripts...Akkadian, Sumerian, Phoenician, Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek, Egyptian, Elamite,
Persian, Sabaean, and Latin, for example. And the Library in Hattusas contains thousands
of documents written on clay tablets, alongside many thousands of scrolls of papyrus,
and, more recently, codices written or printed on the paper produced in Suwarmis's shop.

Hili wants to standardize by having everything translated into Hittite, written in the new
alphabetic script, and printed on the new paper and bound as codices. This will simplify
document storage considerably, and mean that scholars only have to learn one language
and one script. Hili hires a large crew of scholars to do the translations and contracts with
Suwarmis, the Hittite merchant who brought paper making and stone block printing back
from China, to help facilitate the project. Suwarmis is quite literally overwhelmed by the
scope of the project, and he begins looking for ways to simplify the job. In particular, he
begins looking at the printing process to see if there is any way this could be sped up and
simplified. He also begins training a cadre of paper makers, who will run additional
paper shops so as to ramp up production of paper for the project.

318 AD--Suwarmis, the Hittite paper-maker and printer, has an inspiration, based on
something which he sees in use around him everyday. For over three thousand years,
cylinder seals have been in use throughout much of the Near East for stamping important
legal documents (originally used to stamp clay tablets, now more commonly used to
stamp wax seals or as ink stamps). Could not, he reasons, a set of small stamps, each for
one letter of the new alphabetic script, be devised, which could then be arranged into text
at will simply by placing them inside a frame? Assisted by local stone-carvers, potters,
and metal smiths, he begins experimenting with different methods of doing this. But he
needs money, as this is rather expensive research. Suwarmis approaches King Hili and
offers him a stunning possibility...not only may it be possible to simply translate and copy all
the scrolls and tablets in the library into codices, but it may be possible to make
MULTIPLE copies of each, at a relatively low cost, which can be distributed to other
libraries in all the major cities of the empire. This, Suwarmis argues, would prevent a
major disaster...a fire, for example...from destroying the huge reservoir of knowledge
which the Hittite Kings have accumulated in their massive library. Hili is intrigued, and
agrees to fund Suwarmis's experiments.

319 AD--Titus Flavius Posthumius Titianus is ineligible to run for another term as
Roman Dictator. The Senate selects Amnius Anicius Julianus as his successor. Julianus
is a powerful grandee who has, himself, a private army, and he continues...and indeed,
broadens...the policies of his predecessor, seeing them as a means to accrue more power
for himself.

320 AD--A Syrian monk converts Axumite King Ezana to Christianity. Axum becomes
the world's first Christian state. Also in this year, the Kingdom of Koguryo re-establishes
it's independence from China.

320-335 AD--Establishment of the Gupta Empire in India. In 320 AD, Prince
Ghatotkacha of Magadha dies, and is succeeded by his son, Chandra Gupta I. Chandra
Gupta is a brilliant and energetic ruler, and by the end of his reign establishes a large
empire encompassing most of northern India.

323 AD--Suwarmis debuts his new invention...a printing press using moveable
type...which enables him to rapidly set up type and print multiple copies of it. King Hili is
very pleased. With the aid of this device, Hili's great translation and re-copying project
will be completed within the next twenty years, and by the end of the century, branch
libraries will exist in several other cities of the empire...Damascus, Jerusalem, Tyre,
Azatiwataya, and Sardis. When this project is completed, it have one major, but
unintended effect...Hittite will be eventually come to be known as the universal language
of scholarship in the Western World for centuries to come. Since the books are all printed
in Hittite, it is much easier for the scholars to learn Hittite than for all the books to be
reprinted in all the different languages spoken by the scholars.

324 AD--The Kidarites (Red Huns), under their chieftain Kidara, smash through the
borders of the Kushan and Sassanid Persian Empires. The Kushans are completely defeated, and the Kidarites assume power over their empire. The Persians are better able to resist, but repelling the Kidarites will consume most of their energy for some time.

325 AD--Amnius Anicius Julianus is defeated in his bid for a second term as Roman
Dictator. Julianus had angered many Senators by his support of legislation which would
increase his own power, and instead, the Senate selects Acilius Severus as his successor.
Severus will attempt, with limited success, to roll back the power of the proto-feudal
grandees. Also in this year, King Hili I of Hatti dies. He is succeeded by his son, who
reigns as King Tuwanuwa VIII. Tuwanuwa, like his great father, fully funds the great
project at the Royal Library. He also begins to establish branch libraries in other major
cities of the empire.

c. 330 AD--Christianity is introduced into the Himyarite Kingdom by a missionary from
the Hittite Empire. It will take root there and slowly grow...

331 AD--Acilius Severus is defeated in his bid for a second term as Roman Dictator.
Instead, the Senate selects Petronius Probianus as his successor. Probianus is a protege of
former Dictator Julianus, and his election marks a return of full support for the policies of
Dictators Titianus and Julianus.

335-370 AD--Reign of Samudra Gupta in India. In 335 AD, Emperor Chandra Gupta I of
India dies, and is succeeded by his son, Samudra Gupta. Samudra Gupta is another
brilliant military and political leader, and during his reign, the Gupta Empire will be
extended into Assam, the Deccan, and Malwa. Samudra Gupta will also war with Persia
during his reign. Also during his reign, the Puranas, a compendium of Hindu mythology,
will be composed.

337 AD--Petronius Probianus is elected to a second term as Roman Dictator.

337-363 AD--War between Hatti and Persia. Shah Shapur II of Persia, having defeated
the Kidarites (Red Huns) and forced their King, Grumbates, to ally with him, marches
west and invades Mesopotamia. Thus begins a series of campaigns in which Shapur will
attempt to take Mesopotamia from the Hittites. Shapur besieges Hittite fortress cities
such as Babylon, Nippur, Haran, Singara, Nisibis, and Amida repeatedly over the next 26
years, with varying degrees of success. Beginning in 350 AD, Shapur is forced to divert
forces to his eastern frontier, as he fends off invasions by the Hindu army of Samudra
Gupta. The war begins to turn against him at this point, and in 363 AD, the Hittite army,
under King Uassurme I, inflicts a severe defeat on the Persians outside of Babylon.
Shapur sues for peace, and a treaty reaffirming the Zagros Mountains as the border
between the two empires is signed. Mesopotamia remains a Hittite territory.

341 AD--Death of King Tuwanuwa VIII of Hatti. He is succeeded by his son, who reigns
as King Uassurme I. Uassurme, like his father and grandfather before him, continues the
great project in the royal library and the establishment of branch libraries. He will also
fight a long and exhausting war with Shah Shapur II of Persia, before finally bringing it to
a successful close.

343 AD--Petronius Probianus is ineligible for another term as Roman Dictator. The
Senate selects Julius Annius Bassus as his successor. Bassus is a genial non-entity, and
will accomplish little during his tenure as Dictator. He is supported by the grandees and
the army generals, who recognize that having a weak Dictator gives them more power.

349 AD--Julius Annius Bassus declines to run for a second term as Roman Dictator. The
Senate selects Lucius Aradius Valentinianus Proculus as his replacement. Proculus is also
a weak non-entity, and the feudalization of the Roman Republic continues.

350 AD--Hunnic invasion of South-eastern Europe. Also in this year, Emperor Samudra
Gupta of India invades the Sassanid Persian Empire. His army is defeated, but this begins
a war between the two empires that will continue until the end of his reign.

355 AD--Lucius Aradius Valentinianus Proculus is elected to a second term as Roman
Dictator.

361 AD--Lucius Aradius Valentinianus Proculus is ineligible to run for a second term as
Roman Dictator. The Senate selects Flavius Claudius Mamertinus as his successor.
Mamertinus is, unlike his predecessors, an opponent of the accumulation of power in the
hands of the grandees, and seeks to place limits on them.

363 AD--Roman Dictator Flavius Claudius Mamertinus dies...some say by poisoning, but
nobody can prove it...while in office. The First Consul, Flavius Sallustius, succeeds to
the office and serves out the remainder of the term. Flavius Sallustius is a Christian, the
first to ever hold the office of Dictator.

367 AD--Flavius Sallustius is elected Roman Dictator. During his term of office, he will
continue the policies of Mamertinus and try to limit the power of the grandees. And, in
addition, with the support of other Christian Senators, he will attempt to push through a
bill declaring Christianity the official religion of the Roman Republic. This effort will
not be successful, and will create great animosity among the non-Christian portion of the
population and especially among non-Christian members of the Senate. This anger will be
used to devastating effect by the grandees and army generals opposed to Sallustius.

370 AD--The Huns inflict a crushing defeat on the Alans, forcing them out of their lands
north of the Black Sea. The Alans fracture into three main groups. The Eastern Alans go
south into the Caucasus, where they petition the King of Hatti for entry into the Hittite
Empire. King Uassurme I grants entry and settles them in the Caucasus, where they will
prove to make fine recruits for the Hittite cavalry. The Northern Alans move north and
merge with various proto-Slavic groups, while the Western Alans head west, toward the
Roman Empire. Also in this year, the Emperor Samudra Gupta of India dies, and is
succeeded by his son, Rama Gupta. Rama Gupta decides to end the war against Persia,
and concludes a treaty with Shah Shapur II.

372 AD--Death of King Uassurme I of Hatti. He is succeeded by his son, who reigns as
King Tuwatis I. Also in this year, the Alans, after having been forced west by the Huns,
appeal for entry into the Roman Empire. They are refused, and cannot penetrate the
strong Roman defenses on the Vistula/Carpathian line.

373-398 AD--Civil War in Rome. Flavius Sallustius declares his intent to run for another
term as Roman Dictator. His pagan opponents and their grandee allies in the Senate
challenge this, as they say he has already served the statutory limit of two terms.
Sallustius counters by saying that he has only been elected Dictator once...he served the
first term in replacement for the previous Dictator who died in office...and he should be
eligible to run for a second term. The Roman succession statute is not clear on this
matter, and his opponents accuse him of trying to subvert the Roman constitution so as to
make himself Dictator for Life and force Christianity on the people of the Republic.
Both sides begin to rally their forces, riots break out between the supporters of the
respective sides in Rome, and various army generals and local feudal warlords begin
declaring for one side or another. Other generals and warlords, not loyal to either side,
instead see this as an opportunity to seize power for themselves, and also go to war. By
the end of 373 AD, Rome is in the grip of a bitter, multi-sided civil war which will last
the next quarter century.

374 AD--Taking advantage of the chaos caused by the Roman Civil War then raging, in
374 AD the Western Alans successfully breach the Vistula defenses and sweep across the
Roman province of Germania, burning, looting, and pillaging as they go. Roman armies
which are engaged in civil war with each other do very little to impede them. For the
next two years they will wander about pretty much at will over Germania and Gallia
before settling down in Hispania.

375 AD--Shah Shapur II of Persia dies. He is succeeded by his son, who reigns as Shah
Ardashir II. Also in this year, Emperor Rama Gupta of India dies, and is succeeded by his
son, who reigns as Chandra Gupta II. Chandra Gupta II will extend Gupta realm to
Gujarat. Also at this time, nomadic Mongolian tribes of central Asia (possibly remnants of the Hsiung-nu)
organize themselves into a confederation, the Juan-juan. These tribes will later become
known to history as the Avars.

376 AD--The Huns reach the Black Sea, and defeat the Romans, conquer the Eastern
Goths (one of the few Germanic tribes outside of Scandinavia which have not been
absorbed by the Romans), killing their king Hermanerich in the process. Over the next
few years, the Goths will be completely subjugated by the Huns and the Romans will be
driven back to their Vistula/Carpathian defenses. Also in this year, the Roman Governor
of Hispania, Gaius Flavius Maximus, declares the independence of said province from
Rome, and offers the crown of Hispania to King Alatey of the Alans in exchange for help
in expelling the remaining Roman garrisons not loyal to himself. Alatey accepts the
offer, and within a year the forces of Governor Maximus and King Alatey have
established complete control over Hispania. Alatey soon has Maximus quietly murdered,
and seizes complete power for himself.

377 AD--The Huns force their way through the Roman frontier defenses in the
Carpathians and plunder as far as the Danube before turning back. The Roman armies,
engaged in a bitter civil war at the time, barely attempt to stop them. Fortunately for
Rome, this was just a plundering raid...not a full scale invasion.

383 AD--Shah Ardashir II of Persia is killed in battle with the Hittites. He is dies
childless, and is succeeded by his brother, who reigns as Shah Shapur III.

387 AD--The forces loyal to Dictator Flavius Sallustius are defeated in Italy and flee,
along with Sallustius himself, across the Mediterranean to north Africa. Rome’s north
African provinces (Africa, Africa Nova, Numidia, and Mauretania) have been much more
thoroughly Christianized than Rome’s European provinces, and their people side heavily
with Sallustius. Sallustius’s forces take control of the provinces in north Africa, and
Sallustius declares the secession of those provinces from the Roman Republic.
Sallustius also declares Christianity to be the official religion of the new Republic of
Africa, as it will be called. Sallustius soon begins negotiating for treaties of alliance with
Hispania and Hatti. Meanwhile, a rump Senate in Rome composed of the pagan faction
opposed to Sallustius declares Junius Mallius Atticus as the new Dictator of Rome.
Atticus immediately declares Christianity an outlaw religion, and persecutions more
severe than any which have gone before begin. Thousands of Christians flee to north
Africa, taking refuge with Sallustius’s forces. However, the expulsion of Sallustius and
his army to north Africa does not end the civil war in Rome's European provinces, as
various generals and warlords not loyal to either side continue to vie for power over the
Republic.

388 AD--Death of King Tuwatis I of Hatti. He dies childless, and is succeeded by his
brother, who reigns as King Hili II. Soon after taking the throne, King Hili II will sign a
treaty of alliance with Dictator Sallustius of North Africa. Also in this year, Shah Shapur
III of Persia dies, and is succeeded by his brother, who reigns as Shah Bahram IV. Bahram is, at the time, over 70 years old, and his reign will be short and mostly uneventful.

390 AD--Uldin takes power as the Khan of the Huns. Within the next few years, Uldin
will unite the disparate Hunnic tribes under his banner.

393 AD--The all-pagan Senate in Rome re-elects Junius Mallius Atticus to a second term
as Roman Dictator.

394 AD--Kutelburi becomes Khan of the Juan-juan empire, that stretches from
Manchuria in the east to Lake Balkhash in the west.

395 AD--The Huns raid Armenia. In 395 AD, Khan Uldin leads the newly united Hunnic
tribes southward against Hatti. Although they kill King Hili II of Hatti at the Battle of
Lake Van, they nevertheless suffer a major defeat at the hands of the Hittites. Khan Uldin
of the Huns shortly afterward signs a treaty with the new King of Hatti, Wasuruma III, in
which he swears never to cross the Caucasus Mountains again.

395 AD--Death of King Hili II of Hatti in battle against the Huns at the Battle of Lake
Van. He is succeeded by his son, who reigns as King Wasuruma III.

397 AD--Khan Uldin of the Huns begins probing the Roman border defenses along the
Vistula and the Carpathians. He finds them...weak. But unfortunately for him, at this
time some of his subordinate chieftains decide to rebel. Rome will have to wait...

398 AD--A coalition of warlords from Germania and Gallia are finally defeated outside
Massilia (on the southern coast of Gaul) by forces loyal to Dictator Atticus, ending the
Roman Civil War. But Atticus has won a hollow victory...the Roman Republic has been
devastated, and a new enemy is at the gates: THE HUNS.

399 AD--Shah Bahram IV of Persia dies. He is succeeded by his son, who reigns as Shah
Yazdagird I. Also in this year, Dictator Atticus of the Roman Republic steps down, and
the Senate selects Flavius Vincentius as his successor.