WI: Courland's colonies survive for a little while...till 1795

[GameBawesome]

An interesting point in history, is that our Courland's colonization efforts. The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia (Modern-Day Latvia), which was a vassal to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, under Duke Jacob Kettler, made attempts in colonization in the Caribbean and Africa. The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia would colonize Tobago (named New Courland) and Kunta Kinteh Island in Modern-Day Gambia. Then wars with Sweden weakened the naval strength of Courland, and the colonies would be either taken or sold off to other major European powers, like the Dutch or English.

So, as unrealistically it may sound (Because in all honesty it is, but let's have fun for a moment) what if Courland was able to hold onto these colonies for a little longer and maintained a strong navy to project control over these colonies. In its Caribbean colony, the population increase in the decade, while it's African fort has a participation in the Atlantic Triangle Trade. What if Courland's colonies survived into the 18th Century...

Then the Partitions of Poland still happens in 1795, meaning the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia itself is annexed by the Russian Empire. With the end of the Duchy, what happens to their colonies? There are some scenarios I can think of, some realistic to unrealistic:

• Scenario A: The British takes Courland's colonies in the Caribbean and Africa
• Scenario B: The French takes Courland's colonies in the Caribbean and Africa
• Scenario C: The Courland's colonies in the Caribbean and Africa are abandoned completely

And here are the two that would be considered unrealistic:

• Scenario D: The Russians takes Courland's colonies in the Caribbean and Africa
• Scenario E: Courland's colonies become independent

 

[Maburo]

As fun as it would be for the Russians to have colonies in Africa and the Caribbean, I am quite certain the islands would go to the British, perhaps as a sort of tiny token of goodwill on the part of the powers partitioning Poland