WI/AHC: Habsburg Portugal W/O Iberian Union

Not quite sure if it would be possible, but thought it would be fun. D. Sebastiao is born as a girl, and for a husband she ends up married to one of Maria of Spain's plethora of sons (not the future emperor). Or D. Sebastiao marries, but only manages to produce a daughter before his death at Ksar el-Kebir. Said daughter marries a younger Habsburg archduke/infante and creates a sideline of the house of Habsburg in Portugal.

Possible? Doable?
 
The reason I was going for Maria of Spain's sons is because Albrecht served as Stadtholder of Portugal for a while, so surely if there was a Portuguese queen regnant, but no Spanish infantes of an age with her, she might marry an Austrian archduke who is available?
 
Don't see why it wouldn't be possible.

Matthias, Maximillian, or Albert are all of the right age.

It should be possible. But whether Felipe II accepts that possibility is another kettle of fish entirely.

That aside, how might the Portuguese economy etc fare not being linked to Spain? I figure they'd probably hang onto their overseas empire, but at the same time, they'd probably be suckered into the Habsburg Imperial vortex like OTL? Or would they take steps when drafting the marriage contract to ensure this doesn't happen?
 
It should be possible. But whether Felipe II accepts that possibility is another kettle of fish entirely.

That aside, how might the Portuguese economy etc fare not being linked to Spain? I figure they'd probably hang onto their overseas empire, but at the same time, they'd probably be suckered into the Habsburg Imperial vortex like OTL? Or would they take steps when drafting the marriage contract to ensure this doesn't happen?

We keep out of the Spanish wars but ITTL we don't have access to Peruvian silver, of which we acquired quite a lot thanks to the slave trade, so we will have a major bullion crisis unless Mina can keep the gold production of the 1540's.
 
We keep out of the Spanish wars but ITTL we don't have access to Peruvian silver, of which we acquired quite a lot thanks to the slave trade, so we will have a major bullion crisis unless Mina can keep the gold production of the 1540's.

Is it possible for Mina to do so? Or perhaps an earlier discovery of Brazil's mineral resources?
 
Is it possible for Mina to do so? Or perhaps an earlier discovery of Brazil's mineral resources?

Maybe, but the greatest problem will be the Dutch revolt. Historically Portugal used the Flanders bank houses to gain fast access to money and if a war breaks out there we lose our center of buying manufactured good which might be good because OTL that forced us to create the things ourselves and TTL it might do the same.
 
Maybe, but the greatest problem will be the Dutch revolt. Historically Portugal used the Flanders bank houses to gain fast access to money and if a war breaks out there we lose our center of buying manufactured good which might be good because OTL that forced us to create the things ourselves and TTL it might do the same.

The reason I asked about the earlier discovery is that the Dutch don't seem to have made much of an effort while they administered Brazil, the Bragancas claim the throne of Portugal and bam! within a couple of decades Brazil's mineral wealth is flowing to Europe in such quantities that the Portuguese crown rules as absolute monarchs.
 
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