>>Technological change has a tendency to look inevitable in retrospect – “It steam-engines when it’s steam-engine time.”
You would think so. But basically all parts of the steam engine where invented in Roman times (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_technology). Unfortunately, the empire collapsed before anybody found the time to put the parts together. If they had, we would... well, something.
Even earlier than that actually - the Greeks had both the differential gear and the steam engine.
There is pretty much nothing technological that would have prevented Athens from destroying its opponents with steam powered tanks several centuries B.C.
Plus at the time the standard tactic would be a deep phalanx, which would have been absolutely smashed by a tank driving over it.
I happen to host the blog (among others) of an author who has written just such a novel: Bring Laws and Gods. It should be released some time this year.
You would think so. But basically all parts of the steam engine where invented in Roman times (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_technology). Unfortunately, the empire collapsed before anybody found the time to put the parts together. If they had, we would... well, something.