Permanent division of the Inca Empire

[Cuāuhtemōc]

After Huayna Capac and his son/successor Nian Cuyochi had perished due to smallpox, the empire was divided between Huascar and his half-brother Atahualpa who received the northern half with Quito as his capital. Huascar saw his half-brother's claim as illegitimate due to his foreign-born mother and waged war on him. Perhaps if Huascar himself had perished to smallpox and someone less aggressive took the throne, the division would've become permanent, not unlike Theodosius' division of the Roman Empire, and war would've been avoided. The huge casualties that came out of the Inca civil war (some estimates have 1.1 million deaths), along with the smallpox and the huge technological gap between the Spanish and Inca, was the major deciding factor in the conquest by Pizarro.

 

[EvolvedSaurian]

I don't see why the Incan empires couldn't hold tight in their mountain fastnesses, buying technology and gradually gaining immunity to European diseases. It's still going to be a rough time, and I think you're likely to get Spanish ports and Spanish priests imposed on them, but it'd still be a better situation for them than OTL.

Later on, when the silver is discovered and exploited, they'd do better by not having most of the bullion shipped to Spain.

 

[Thanksforallthefish]

And the lack of silver in Spain would lead to very interesting butterflies. The Incans were certainly in the best position to resist the Spainards of all native empires.

Well, I don't know very much about Incan dynastic politics, but the Chimú were just recently conquered, and if given the chance may rebel. If Spain takes the chance, it could conquer the northern portion with their help, or stablish it as a puppet nation. But if Atahualpa and Huascar stay low, they could eventually reunify.

 

[Cuāuhtemōc]

And the lack of silver in Spain would lead to very interesting butterflies. The Incans were certainly in the best position to resist the Spainards of all native empires.

Well, I don't know very much about Incan dynastic politics, but the Chimú were just recently conquered, and if given the chance may rebel. If Spain takes the chance, it could conquer the northern portion with their help, or stablish it as a puppet nation. But if Atahualpa and Huascar stay low, they could eventually reunify.

The Chimu, to my recollection, did not chafe under Incan rule and were not one of the groups who joined the Spaniards in fighting the Atahualpa. The Canari would be a valuable ally for any Spanish expedition to conquer (at least) the northern division but Atahualpa would probably crush them as soon as he is sure that Huascar's successor would not wage war on him. One of the Canari cities was destroyed in the OTL Civil War. Any suspected uppity-ness from them would have them exterminated and dispersed to the far corners of the empire, as was custom for the Inca to weaken tribal loyalties and assimilate them.