AHC: Portugal having Canary Islands

abc123

Banned
OK, how can we have a situation where Portugal has, with all it's OTL posessions, Canary Islands?
 

Lusitania

Donor
Portugal discovered them by 1336 but in 1345 Pope Clement VI gave the islands to Castile. So the easiest would of been for Pope Clement VI to of stayed out of Portuguese business. The islands would stayed Portuguese and the Portuguese would of started its colonization.
 
OK, how can we have a situation where Portugal has, with all it's OTL posessions, Canary Islands?

Spain enters WWII on the Axis side, Portugal then declares for the Allies, and the US/UK occupy the Canaries after Gibralter is besieged. After the war the Canaries are made a possession of Portugal with concessions for US and UK naval bases.
 
OK, how can we have a situation where Portugal has, with all it's OTL posessions, Canary Islands?
Henry the Navigator was committed to it during all his life and he failed spectacularly. A couple of years of control of Lazarote and a brief foothold on La Gomera was all that he got.

So let's see... The latest (and IMO the most obvious) PoD is having the War of the Castilian Succession end up in a negotiated peace where Afonso V recognizes Isabel as queen of Castile in exchange for several concessions.

An earlier PoD would be having Jean de Bettencourt seek Portuguese sponsorship for his expedition instead of Castilian.

Also, I believe Enrique IV didn't care about the Canaries and practically signed it off to Portugal during his lifetime but right now I can't remember the details of the event and why it didn't materialize.
 

abc123

Banned
I wonder, if Portugal gained Canary islands ( never mind when, maybe during the war of Castillian Sucession ), would Spanish discovery of the Americas be possible at all?

Considering that Columbus headed from Canary Islands...
 

Driftless

Donor
A little tangential, but are there any real natural harbors on the Canaries? On the map they all look so open to the effects of wind & wave.

To Lusitania's point about about the Pope assigning the islands to Castile: why was that done, and why by the Pope? Was he the mediator in a dispute?
 

abc123

Banned
A little tangential, but are there any real natural harbors on the Canaries? On the map they all look so open to the effects of wind & wave.

To Lusitania's point about about the Pope assigning the islands to Castile: why was that done, and why by the Pope? Was he the mediator in a dispute?

Because Portugal and Spain were Christian countries and Pope as leader of Christian world had the moral authority to mediate between them...
 

abc123

Banned
I wonder, does option that Portugal gives their North African posessions ( like Ceuta, Alcacer Seguer etc. ) for Spanish Canary Islands seems as realistic for you?
 
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