I was Goggleing on some research for my TL and came on this from 8 years ago 
?Does any one know why King Sebastian would have all his nobility in North Africa? ?WI he had Won?
In 1580 King Sebastian I and the entire Protugese nobility were killed
campaigning in North Africa. This paved the way for Philip II to
proclaim himself as the legitimate heir and king of Portugal, as well as
Castile, the Indies, Aragon, Valencia, Catalonia, the Low Countries,
Sicily, Naples, etc etc...
In the 60 years of Spanish rule, Portugal's interests suffered.
Portugese colonies were fair game to the Dutch, in open rebellion/war
against the Spanish crown. In this way, Portugal lost to the
Dutch Indonesia, Formosa, the Cape region, and Brazil briefly in the
1620s. Also, Port. ended up in this era on the 'losing side' of the
Thirty Years War. etc. Basically, a declining Spain brought Portugal
down with it.
For a POD, lets assume that king Sebastian escapes with his life.
Philip has no claim and while he persues his ill-fated grand Catholic
strategy of extending himself too thin and persuing an inquisition
against everything in sight, with the same end result by 1640 for the
Spanish monarchy, Portugal quietly goes about its business. By 1640,
some heir of Sebastian's house of Avis is presiding over a well
organized colonial empire spread throughout Asia, Africa, and Brazil,
and his able merchants and sailors are present in ports throughout the
world. Basically, Portugal is at a point by 1640 where the Dutch were
in OTL, the merchantile wave of the future. BTW, the Dutch have not
fared as well, as they have not been able to get a foothold colonially
by taking Portugese possessions. I assume they still win their
eighty-year war of independence against Spain, though, but who knows.
Perhaps a Spanish Armada setting out in 1588 from Cadiz instead of
Lisbon might not run into such storm trouble.
But anyway, Portugal might be set to be the standard bearing nation by
the middle of the seventeenth century. Rule Lusitania.
?Does any one know why King Sebastian would have all his nobility in North Africa? ?WI he had Won?In 1580 King Sebastian I and the entire Protugese nobility were killed
campaigning in North Africa. This paved the way for Philip II to
proclaim himself as the legitimate heir and king of Portugal, as well as
Castile, the Indies, Aragon, Valencia, Catalonia, the Low Countries,
Sicily, Naples, etc etc...
In the 60 years of Spanish rule, Portugal's interests suffered.
Portugese colonies were fair game to the Dutch, in open rebellion/war
against the Spanish crown. In this way, Portugal lost to the
Dutch Indonesia, Formosa, the Cape region, and Brazil briefly in the
1620s. Also, Port. ended up in this era on the 'losing side' of the
Thirty Years War. etc. Basically, a declining Spain brought Portugal
down with it.
For a POD, lets assume that king Sebastian escapes with his life.
Philip has no claim and while he persues his ill-fated grand Catholic
strategy of extending himself too thin and persuing an inquisition
against everything in sight, with the same end result by 1640 for the
Spanish monarchy, Portugal quietly goes about its business. By 1640,
some heir of Sebastian's house of Avis is presiding over a well
organized colonial empire spread throughout Asia, Africa, and Brazil,
and his able merchants and sailors are present in ports throughout the
world. Basically, Portugal is at a point by 1640 where the Dutch were
in OTL, the merchantile wave of the future. BTW, the Dutch have not
fared as well, as they have not been able to get a foothold colonially
by taking Portugese possessions. I assume they still win their
eighty-year war of independence against Spain, though, but who knows.
Perhaps a Spanish Armada setting out in 1588 from Cadiz instead of
Lisbon might not run into such storm trouble.
But anyway, Portugal might be set to be the standard bearing nation by
the middle of the seventeenth century. Rule Lusitania.