ETERNAL ROME “The Promised Land” (1989) “Tales of the Venian Woods” (1989) “Outpost of the Empire” (1991) “Dear Rome” (1994) “Waiting for the End” (1998) Works from the “Eternal Rome” series are based on the principle of alternative history. The author proposes a scenario according to which the ancient Jews remained in Egypt, and did not leave it under the leadership of Moses, as described in the Book of Exodus. Since it follows from this that the Jews failed to settle in Palestine, Jesus of Nazareth was never born, Christianity did not arise, and Rome remained pagan. The history of Rome in this alternative version, at least from the founding of the city until the fourth century, is basically identical to the history of our Rome. The empire arises under Augustus, expands under Trajan, Hadrian and Marcus Aurelius. Further the state's position deteriorated in the third century during the period of military dictatorship, and under Constantine the Great the Empire splits into western and eastern parts. After Constantine, who in our Universe made Christianity the official religion of the Empire, history takes a different path. The Empire, instead of weakening as a result of the strife between the heirs of Constantine, as happened in our history, and the political squabbles associated with the change in the scale of moral values caused by the introduction of Christianity, on the contrary, develops and grows territorially during the fifth century and is finally strengthened during the period , which we call the Dark Ages, repels the aggression of the barbarians and becomes a world empire stretching from Britain to the borders of India and China. The Empire has no serious rivals, although tensions arise at times between its western and eastern halves. The Aztec and Inca empires in the New World remain independent and powerful, despite Rome's failed attempt to conquer them and establish a New Rome on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. The time period described in the stories of Eternal Rome begins with 753 BC. (the traditional date of the founding of Rome), and therefore our 1999 corresponds to 2752 according to an alternative calendar. Of the works already written in the series, the earliest chronologically is “Waiting for the End,” which takes place in an alternate history year 1951, or 1198 AD. It tells of the western half of the Empire during a period of decadence, when its territory is invaded and defeated by the troops of the Greek-speaking eastern half.Imperial The years from 2250 to 2550, corresponding to our 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, are characterized by the Renaissance, which receives its first impetus under the great Emperor Trajan VII, when the period of great geographical discoveries began and the rapid development of trade relations with Asian countries took place. Economic growth caused by the emergence of new trade routes inevitably leads to the industrial revolution and the disintegration of the imperial center into regions whose population speaks dialects that are already close to real languages (Gallic, Spanish, British, “Roman” - Italian and others). This results in a gradual weakening of central power, characteristic of the stage of “prosperous decadence.” An attempt to reunite the nearly independent European provinces was made in Alternate History 2563 (1810). AD) A man of Napoleonic type - Count Valerian Apollinaire. It was successful, and for a while the Empire, led by the “shadow” figure of Apollinaire, seemed to come to life. The assassination of Apollinaire means the death of the imperial system. After eighteen centuries of the reign of the Caesars, a broad social movement arises with the goal of putting an end to the lazy and luxurious aristocracy and returning to the ancient republican traditions of government destroyed by Augustus. The next piece already written, Dear Rome, tells of the overthrow of the last Emperor in 2603 (1850 AD), the murder of most of the imperial family, and the establishment of the Second Republic under the auspices of the authoritarian and conservative Caius Junius Scaevola, who takes the title First Consul for Life.Next The story - “Tales of the Venienne Forest” - dates back to a time fifty years after the fall of the Caesars. It features the last surviving member of the imperial family - an old man living in a quiet forest retreat near the city we call Vienna. Our narrative then moves to the year 2723 (1970 AD) in the story "The Promised Land." Here, the charismatic Egyptian Jew Moshe attempts to build a spaceship to take his people to another world. An attempt to launch the ship ends in disaster. Moshe is killed, but the story ends with us witnessing the emergence of a new messianic religion. Its hero is Moshe, who is revered as the Son of God. The story offered to readers dates back to 2503 (1750 AD). It fills a gap in the series by describing the Empire in the last years of the Second Decadence, when Emperor Demetrius II is about to ascend the throne, and a certain historian recalls the Renaissance period that began under Trajan VII a quarter of a millennium ago as a golden age.