Writing from a phone us hell, sorry. I'll finish my post here. I said Prim would probably pushed for a dominion status for Cuba, under a constitutional monarchy. He had the charisma, popularity, intelligence and the balls to go ahead with this in Madrid, plus the right contacts in Cuba.We don't have that very special individual, but we have some talented people who could help. For example, General Prim, while his service in Cuba, gathered very good relations with some cuban separatist leaders. As the clever and liberal man he was he understood not only the rightness of their demands, but also that an independent Cuba was only a matter of time. Fate wanted to make him the strongman of Spain after the Glorious Revolution of 1868 that toppled Isabel II, and it was his pet project to bring a liberal and democratic monarch to Spain, leading to the proclamation of Amadeo of Savoy as king of Spain. However, fate also wanted to get him murdered some days before the arrival of Amadeo, murdered in uncleared circumstances. My bet is that Prim would have pushed for a dominio-like status for Cuba in
Make Cuba overwhelmingly Carlist and then make Prince Carlos flees to Cuba at the end of the first carlist war.
I think that it never happened before, but in 1833, before the First Carlist War, Carlos was exiled in Portugal. He could have been exiled to Cuba instead... but we need a more energetic Carlos.Did any of the Spanish Royalty ever visit their colonies? Being the Spare could give Don Carlos the opportunity to do such a thing, and visit one of Spain's remaining possessions. How would the population of Cuba receive the arrival of a Prince. It could be the starting point for Carlos if he is forced to flee.