AHC: Spanish speaking country controlling all of North and South America

[NAF]

Let's assume that through some series of events Spain is able to unite the entire Iberian peninsula under its rule. Let us also then assume that this stronger Spain goes on to colonize the new world unabated, with the other European powers such as France or Britain being unable or unwilling to gain any significant foothold in the Americas for whatever reasons you can conjure up. Now, with the Americas all sharing the same language and having a similar culture, is there any possible scenario in which the Spanish colonies could unite into a single nation controlling the entirety of the Americas?

And as a rule, the nation should remain united to the present day, so no having it unite and then collapse a couple years later.

 

[Nivek]

Let's assume that through some series of events Spain is able to unite the entire Iberian peninsula under its rule. Let us also then assume that this stronger Spain goes on to colonize the new world unabated, with the other European powers such as France or Britain being unable or unwilling to gain any significant foothold in the Americas for whatever reasons you can conjure up. Now, with the Americas all sharing the same language and having a similar culture, is there any possible scenario in which the Spanish colonies could unite into a single nation controlling the entirety of the Americas?

And as a rule, the nation should remain united to the present day, so no having it unite and then collapse a couple years later.

Spain was unable to proper colonize his colonies, this is hard to asb.

 

[Pralaya]

Spain was unable to proper colonize his colonies, this is hard to asb.

I agree, very, very, very, VERY unlikely and bound to immediately collapse. Hell, even OTL Latin America is virtually confined to multiple cultural and ethnic regions, from Mexico over to the Andean nations back to the Platean ones, and they certainly weren't always fond of each other. The administation of an empire rivaling the largest of our world is just impossible without alien space bats somehow giving Gran Colombia, as I would call that entity, in honour of a certain Victoria 2 alternate history mod, FTL travel and total control of the Magellan Straits and the Arctic Sea.

 

[Nivek]

I agree, very, very, very, VERY unlikely and bound to immediately collapse. Hell, even OTL Latin America is virtually confined to multiple cultural and ethnic regions, from Mexico over to the Andean nations back to the Platean ones, and they certainly weren't always fond of each other. The administation of an empire rivaling the largest of our world is just impossible without alien space bats somehow giving Gran Colombia, as I would call that entity, in honour of a certain Victoria 2 alternate history mod, FTL travel and total control of the Magellan Straits and the Arctic Sea.

Even if they got the continent they would loss to more nation, we could see an america collapse and slowly colonize itself(people forgot colombia and venezuela colonize themselves..and brazil and Argentina got lucky good enough white inmigration, ditto chile, and asian one for peru).A mega america need not only what you say but a country cared for colonies unlike spain just wanted gold

 

[Lusitania]

This is totally doable on eU4 but not possible in real world unless Spain went on to not only conquer Portugal but England and France plus anyone else who had any chance of sending a ship across the ocean.

 

[David T]

The best way to make the Americas virtually all Spanish speaking is to have a nuclear war kill almost everyone north of the Rio Grande (and most people in Brazil, too, if it aligns itself with the US and Canada while the rest of Latin America does not). But that's post-1900 (and anyway Spanish-speaking America is still not united into one nation).

 

[fluttersky]

This timeline has all of the Americas, as well as southern Africa, being Portuguese.

 

[NiGHTS]

This timeline has all of the Americas, as well as southern Africa, being Portuguese.

Yeah, but they're not Spanish, so it's not as unbelievable. (Sarcastic tone.)

 

[Lampiao]

Let's assume that through some series of events Spain is able to unite the entire Iberian peninsula under its rule. Let us also then assume that this stronger Spain goes on to colonize the new world unabated, with the other European powers such as France or Britain being unable or unwilling to gain any significant foothold in the Americas for whatever reasons you can conjure up.

That's literally OTL. The other European powers only started colonizing the New World some decades after the start of the Iberian Union. So, yea, technically OTL.

 

[SenatorErnesto]

I am pretty sure a Call of Duty has some future where all of Latin America unites and invades the United States. Another example of ASB as this surely is, I mean granted some truly focused effort of the Spanish Empire to bar literally anyone and everyone from immigrating to the New World this is impossible.

Heck the Castilian didn't even let other Spanish speaking Iberians got to the colonies until much later on.

 

[Miguel Lanius]

Totally ASB, the Spanish ITTL could barely keep the Portuguese down and under.

Fine, let's assume the Portuguese are out of the running, that's plausible.

The Portuguese were THE colonizers. If they had as much people as Spain did, this forum would be called História Alternativa.com.pt and we would all be speaking portuguese. They were the first and the last of the colonizers, everyone else was pretty much following their trailblazing.
By comparison, the Spanish's main assets are more money and better demographics, which makes it easier to colonize and settle vast lands.
Fine, no Portuguese colonization. That doesn't mean the Spanish just swoop in and get everything.

You just opened a giant power void.

The Spanish will have different interests and methods from the Portuguese. For example, they won't be as interested in India as the Portuguese were, because for a while the Portuguese saw Brazil as just a nice patch of land to plant some sugar-cane in, while the Spanish had gold and silver coming out of the ear from Mexico and the Andes.

The Portuguese were pretty big for a good while in Indian Ocean politics. Remove the Portuguese element and you change everything there.

Fine, back to America.

The Portuguese stopped a bunch of would-be colonization attempts. Two French attempts, a Dutch invasion and I once read that a bunch of english people tried to colonize the Amazon.

Don't forget: The Portuguese had Spain at their back and... that was it. Meanwhile, the Spanish have France on their back, a far more dangerous opponent, and England will definitively be a rival - possibly allies, but possibly rivals as well (whereas the English-Portuguese alliance was always a thing, barring the Union). They also have interests in the Italian Peninsula, and in the Maghreb. Unlike the Portuguese, they can't just ignore Europe, keep Spain out and colonize more.

Also, they might end up with Portuguese colonizers, so I rather doubt we will see Spanish-speaking colonies only. Especially if Portugal is a united kingdom and not just a province, which is more probable. If they forbid the Portuguese from the colonies, that will mean less demographics for settling.

Without the Portuguese, it is rather likely that Spain has to contend with French and possibly Dutch in OTL Brazil. There is also likely to be a strong english presence eventually, and possibly some alternate colonizers.

I think your scenario is more likely to produce a more multi-lingual continent.

 

[Dfront21]

Even if they got the continent they would loss to more nation, we could see an america collapse and slowly colonize itself(people forgot colombia and venezuela colonize themselves..and brazil and Argentina got lucky good enough white inmigration, ditto chile, and asian one for peru).A mega america need not only what you say but a country cared for colonies unlike spain just wanted gold

Argentina having a large amount of European immigrants to Buenos Aires hasn't made it a developed country. In fact, its quite a basket case. Same with Peru despite its minimal Asian immigration. Chile is mostly mestizo.

 

[chornedsnorkack]

Let's assume that through some series of events Spain is able to unite the entire Iberian peninsula under its rule. Let us also then assume that this stronger Spain goes on to colonize the new world unabated, with the other European powers such as France or Britain being unable or unwilling to gain any significant foothold in the Americas for whatever reasons you can conjure up. Now, with the Americas all sharing the same language and having a similar culture, is there any possible scenario in which the Spanish colonies could unite into a single nation controlling the entirety of the Americas?

And as a rule, the nation should remain united to the present day, so no having it unite and then collapse a couple years later.

You are making silent assumption - united in America but somehow separated from Iberian peninsula. How?
The first settlement attempts of English in America were testing waters. Roanoke colony failed and no more attempts followed for 20 years. Virginia had Starving Time and people were departing when relieved. And the founders were worried about Spain taking action against it.
Suppose Virginia does fail and deter followup attempts. How do you make Spain of Felipe III and IV just slightly stronger, so the initial settlement attempts of English are foiled or deterred through the first half of 17th century (and Brazil and Portugal stay in Iberian Union)?

 

[Condottiero]

Even if they got the continent they would loss to more nation, we could see an america collapse and slowly colonize itself(people forgot colombia and venezuela colonize themselves..and brazil and Argentina got lucky good enough white inmigration, ditto chile, and asian one for peru).A mega america need not only what you say but a country cared for colonies unlike spain just wanted gold

"just wanted gold": I suppose that is why there were 16 universities in Spanish America by the time Harvard was founded, there were more than 1000 hospitals (Lima had a better health care system than any other European town), and the Spanish Kings and Queens approved laws aimed to the conversion of the Amerindian population...

 

[Condottiero]

Argentina having a large amount of European immigrants to Buenos Aires hasn't made it a developed country. In fact, its quite a basket case. Same with Peru despite its minimal Asian immigration. Chile is mostly mestizo.

Argentina was a developed country in the first decades of the XX century.

 

[Nivek]

"just wanted gold": I suppose that is why there were 16 universities in Spanish America by the time Harvard was founded, there were more than 1000 hospitals (Lima had a better health care system than any other European town), and the Spanish Kings and Queens approved laws aimed to the conversion of the Amerindian population...

Zero in gran colombia area and much were limited to peninsulares and few criollos anyway

 

[Santo Nombre]

Let's assume that through some series of events Spain is able to unite the entire Iberian peninsula under its rule. Let us also then assume that this stronger Spain goes on to colonize the new world unabated, with the other European powers such as France or Britain being unable or unwilling to gain any significant foothold in the Americas for whatever reasons you can conjure up.

To achieve what you want, just keep Spain stable during the XVII century:
-Implement the 1626 Union of Arms project of Count-Duke of Olivares, centralizing and unifying the Kingdom.
-Avoid the 1640 crisis, so no secession of Portugal and no revolts of Andalucía and Cataluña.
-Whith the Americas open to every spanish subject, we could see the expulsion of the english, dutch, swedish, french,... over the second half of the XVII century.
-At some point during the XVIII century Spain faces a contention war against a coalition of european powers, who invades many islands and regions of America, but they react by creating an Unión Continental Americana arround 1750, while in Europe Spain fails and is chopped in pieces: Cataluña and Flanders go to France, Portugal and southern Italy regain independence, Andalucia is owned by England (like an enlarged Gibraltar) and wathever you can imagine.
-The UCA retakes and liberates Continental Spain, who gets incorporate to the UCA as a European/Mediterranean foothold, so the center of power of the empire is now in America.

 

[Santo Nombre]

Zero in gran colombia area and much were limited to peninsulares and few criollos anyway

 

[chornedsnorkack]

-At some point during the XVIII century Spain faces a contention war against a coalition of european powers, who invades many islands and regions of America, but they react by creating an Unión Continental Americana arround 1750, while in Europe Spain fails and is chopped in pieces: Cataluña and Flanders go to France, Portugal and southern Italy regain independence, Andalucia is owned by England (like an enlarged Gibraltar) and wathever you can imagine.
-The UCA retakes and liberates Continental Spain, who gets incorporate to the UCA as a European/Mediterranean foothold, so the center of power of the empire is now in America

Not specified in OP that there would be retaking of Peninsula.

If Portuguese/Brazilian secession in 1640 is butterflown away by a smarter valido in 1620s-1630s, there would still be Carlos el Hechizado dying sine prole in 1700.
But completely different balance of power with intact Iberian Empire, and different alignment of allies.

If in TTL Spanish Succession, one of Felipe and Archduck ends up running to Indies and keeping all of them, and the other taking the whole Peninsula plus Italy and Netherlands, would that be what was asked for?