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How likely was a Portuguese takeover of Japan, with a PoD before 1700?
Comparing this hypothetical scenario to OTL's British conquest of India, it doesn't seem too impossible to me. Like the Portuguese in Japan, the British were originally interested in commerce with India, before they got sucked in and ended up colonizing the place gradually, despite its advanced state systems.
Japan was also significantly influenced by Portuguese Christian missionaries IOTL, despite their persecution by the daimyos.
So, what would be necessary for the Portuguese to estabilish a stable foothold in Japan, as a base for future conquests?
Would the Iberian Union with Spain have to be prevented, for an argument?
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