AHC: Have a Muslim power participate in the Age of Exploration

This would really vary. First off, the Philippines are a mix of Muslim and non-Muslim kingdoms, such as the Kingdom of Tondo and the Muslim Sultanates of Sulu and Maguindanao. This would probably result in Spanish colonization of about almost every Philippine island north of Maguindanao Island unless the Muslim Sultanates have a great leap in ships, military strategies and gunpowder uses. The only problem is that the way in which the Spanish fought was new and unseen to the kingdoms there, and mass-producing gunpowder and storing it in tropical South-East Asia would require some big thinking, all within just a few years of Spain's arrival.

If you want to kick-start SE-Asia into the Early Modern period and sail the Unknown Seas, then you would have to give it an enemy or a conflict that would require the kingdoms there to innovate and invent new things and thoughts first before Spanish arrival.

Actually, given the long history of Chinese and Japanese immigrants to the Philippines I wonder if a Islamic, Chinese-Japanese Sultanate in the Philippines could be established.
 
They did it OTL, with a relative success (Morrocan coast being taken over for some times).

More naval motivated Morocco doesn't make it stronger (it actually means it lost control of sudanese trade roads or at best a large part of it) and can actually spread thin its ressources for a short time.
If we keep the idea of a Berber dynasty keeping Algraves and Grenada, I would think the reconquest by Spanish christian states is pretty much unavoidable at this point even if delayed, and as OTL, it would be an incitative for controlling Morrocean coast.

Seeing how naval expeditions would likely be motivated far more for african trade already known by Berbers rather than "let's go west", I would tend to think trading posts and strong points along Guinea Gulf are far more probable.

So, the choice for Morocco would basically be either develop maritime trade routes in the Atlantic and Americas, or continue the trans-Saharan trade; they don't seem to be able to do both, especially with the threat of Spanish and Portuguese attacks on their mainland, and choosing the American route leaves their kingdom vulnerable.

This brings up another question: Assuming Morocco focuses on African trade and exploration, and ends up establishing a presence down along the coast of northwestern Africa all the way to the Gulf of Guinea, and assuming this more robust Morocco causes Spain and Portugal to draw away more military assets from the Americas and Southeast Asia to protect their own kingdoms and positions in Africa and the Mediterranean, how does this affect the Iberian advance in the Americas, and, crucially, how does the Moroccan presence affect the inception of the trans-Atlantic slave trade?

I can see muslims explorations in Africa, even if possible an Islamic presence on Guinea gulf but America is another stuff : maybe Brazil coast but it would be too far and less interesting for Muslims than for Christians.

Why is this the case? That is, why would South American colonies and trade be less interesting to the Muslims?
 
So, the choice for Morocco would basically be either develop maritime trade routes in the Atlantic and Americas.
Not really : they have no interest on developping trade routes with Atlantic and Americas in first place.
Slaves, Sugar, Gold and Silver, etc. All of that they could (and did) find it easier in Africa.

how does this affect the Iberian advance in the Americas
Relativly limited consequences : Spanish forces were never that overhelming before Native ones, using largely native allies and technical superiority. You may have more defeats for conquistador armies and possibly due to fewer numbers some conquests butterflied but, honestly, this could have easily happened IOTL as well without such a PoD.

If, say, Pizarro fail to conquer Peru, it is still plausible but not a direct consequence itself of the PoD.

and, crucially, how does the Moroccan presence affect the inception of the trans-Atlantic slave trade?
As OTL, they would be the main slave-seller on Africa. Basically, instead of subsaharian african rulers selling subsaharian african slaves, you'll have Arabo-Berber doing it.

A far more interesting consequence, is what about Portuguese trade on India : if they are unable to set up a presence on western African coast (given the odds and the description of a weakened Morroco in Africa, I don't think it would be likely), I don't think they could take control of Indian markets and trade ways that easily if at all.
 
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