WI: Huáscar Also Dies?

[King of the Uzbeks]

So in 1524 the Inca Emperor Huayna Capac died of smallpox. He left the North to his favorite son Atahualpa and the South to his legitamate heir Huáscar. This arrengment simply didn't work and soon the Empire fell into Civil War. The Civil War weakened the disease ridden Empire even further and making it easy prey for Pizzaro. But what if Huáscar had died in the smallpox epidemic as well? This would logicly leave the Empire to Atahualpa, without the civil war the Inca would be substantually stronger. What effect would this have on Spanish Colomization?

 

[Pururauka]

Not good news for the Spaniards, I take it.

As you said yourself, with unified leadership and no deadly civil war, the Incas are on much better position when Pizarro comes knocking. As the Inca himself is firmly established, they might not even get a chance to meet him in person, but rather, are put off by his proxies, and a few of them are invited to Cusco. There, they might be held indefinitely, while the rest of the expedition goes crazy thinking they’re left stranded. If they lose their nerves, they might begin living off the land (which they did do OTL on the way to meet Atahualpa) which only guarantees that they are overwhelmed with numbers. For the Europeans then, the element of surprise is lost.

The subsequent expeditions to Peru will be Spanish, at least until the late XVIth century, when English corsairs start showing up in the south Pacific. At that point, they can be played off against one another, with some trading posts opened along the coast, in a manner reminiscent of Japan’s interaction with the Europeans.