british tanger

Tanger was given as dowry to the British in Charles´marriage to Catherine in 1661. My questions are: would have been viable for the British to keep the city? and wich had been the consequences of Tangier in their hands since 1661?
 
The only necessary reason for the British to keep Tangiers is having more money - they abandoned it in 1684 for no other reason than they couldn't pay the troops. I think it's reasonable to suggest that if they had got over that brief problem, they could have held Tangiers to the current day. The by-products wouldn't actually be that great however. Britain's control of the Mediterranean would be greater but not much more so because from just after this period it actually pretty much controlled the Mediterranean to a degree anyway. It wouldn't make the British any more likely to keep, say, Minorca or to be any more successful anywhere else because the only thing it would really do is make it a bit harder for foreign nations to get fleets through the Strait of Gibraltar, which they were fairly good at anyway. I can't see it really changing history much, except that in the present day they would likely still own it.

Incidentally, yes I think they would still try to grab Gibraltar in 1704. Control of two sides of the Strait is much better than one.
 
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I'm not sure if the English can hold onto it. The King's resources are strained, and Ismail had made a vigorous, concerted effort to retake ports controlled by Europeans. The English have no one in the region to trade with, and they lack the military forces of the 18th century to defend it.
 
I'm not sure if the English can hold onto it. The King's resources are strained, and Ismail had made a vigorous, concerted effort to retake ports controlled by Europeans. The English have no one in the region to trade with, and they lack the military forces of the 18th century to defend it.

Possibly, though with next-door Ceuta still in Portuguese/Spanish hands there would likely be a coordinated defence between the two countries involved which would surely increase their chances of holding it. If it did still fall, under circumstances where the English had really tried to hold it, I'd guess that the English would be back some time within 20 years when they were stronger, to retake it. Possibly in conjunction with the capture of Gibraltar, which has a natural extension for them to then take Ceuta too, and fully control both sides of the Strait.

But you're right that they may lose it and never have the chance to regain it.
 
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