WI:A Stronger Bruneian Empire vs Spain

Since in OTL the Spanish made the quarrel between the Bolkiahs severe since some of them allied with Spanish.

What if the Bolkiahs reconciled their differences and did not quarrel over their big inheritance in Maritime South East Asia and submitted to their leader before the Spanish came, would this big Empire not collapse before the Spanish discover them?
 
The real question is: could the Bruneians seek better allies against Spain? If Venice could help the Ottomans improve their naval capabilities as well as help the Mughals with creating a navy of their own, then there would be endless possibilities.
 
The real question is: could the Bruneians seek better allies against Spain? If Venice could help the Ottomans improve their naval capabilities as well as help the Mughals with creating a navy of their own, then there would be endless possibilities.
But it collapsed when the Spanish had some of the Bolkiahs ally with them, I think it will survive if none of the Bolkiahs allied with the Spanish and the Spanish would only conquer Visayas and the Bicol region but the Spanish would be expelled from the area that they occupied in OTL Luzon later on because the Bolkiahs are united and I think they could ally with the Mughals later on when the Portuguese and the Dutch come.
 
You're acting as if the Mughals are going to want to create a navy. They were overwhelmingly a continental power -what's in it for them?

Also a united Bruneian Empire, if centralised enough, could well prove a challenge to the Spaniards who are going to be massively outnumbered and potentially unable to snap up bits and pieces in digestible chunks.
 
But it collapsed when the Spanish had some of the Bolkiahs ally with them, I think it will survive if none of the Bolkiahs allied with the Spanish and the Spanish would only conquer Visayas and the Bicol region but the Spanish would be expelled from the area that they occupied in OTL Luzon later on because the Bolkiahs are united and I think they could ally with the Mughals later on when the Portuguese and the Dutch come.

The Bolkiahs could have allied with the Dutch, but the Portuguese would make things difficult. Perhaps if Venice also claims a stake in the spice trade that includes Brunei, then you could have a Bruneian-Mughal-Ottoman-Venetian alliance.
 
From what I heard the royal palace in Brunei is quite fortified during the spanish colonial period of Philippines. So the ruling class is pretty safe at the very least. All they have to do is prevent the in-fighting in the royal house and manage the better part of their kingdom to stop revolts from occurring.
 
From what I heard the royal palace in Brunei is quite fortified during the spanish colonial period of Philippines. So the ruling class is pretty safe at the very least. All they have to do is prevent the in-fighting in the royal house and manage the better part of their kingdom to stop revolts from occurring.
That is why they should act together as one....and set aside their greed.
 
You're acting as if the Mughals are going to want to create a navy. They were overwhelmingly a continental power -what's in it for them?

Also a united Bruneian Empire, if centralised enough, could well prove a challenge to the Spaniards who are going to be massively outnumbered and potentially unable to snap up bits and pieces in digestible chunks.

Portuguese naval presence in the Indian Ocean would definitely create some problems for the Mughals, hence why I suggested that the Mughals should have an early development of a navy. Another thing that could energize the Bruneians: an alliance or a union with the Aceh Sultanate, which could give the Bolkiahs another set of leverage and some contact with the Ottoman Empire, which made a presence in Aceh itself.
 
Portuguese naval presence in the Indian Ocean would definitely create some problems for the Mughals, hence why I suggested that the Mughals should have an early development of a navy.

But it's not like a computer game- they can't necessarily just forsee that these Europeans turning up to trade at the Indian ports are actually going to be a major threat in any way. As far as the Mughals and other Indian polities are concerned they're just doing what people have always done- come to India to look for trade goods.

Besides what problems would Portuguese naval presence in the Indian Ocean cause for the Mughals? They're not interested in controlling the Indian Ocean trade because they don't need to. People will come to them.
 
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