WI: no Support for Columbus

Considering the hard time Columbus had finding support for his travels, what would happen if he never found someone 'desperate' enough to foot the bill, due to their learned scholars tossing his plans for vastly underestimating the distance to travel (seem to remember that scholars allready had a fairly good grasp on the actual size of the earth). Obviously sooner or later Basque or English fishermen would stumble over North America in their cod fishing expedition, but what would change otherwise?
 
The Inca (or is that spelled' Inka' nowdays?) might have been in better shape when Europeans finally reached them.
 
There likely would have been a different expedition within a few decades. What really enabled European exploration west was new shipbuilding technology and knowledge of trade winds. If Columbus doesn't go west, someone else will, and probably soon.
 
It seems likely that the English would mount an expedition at some point. The fishermen from Bristol where in Newfoundland and the Bristol merchants would want to exploit the resources of the New World or more likely try to find their way to India and the Pacific to get at the spices.

However without the run for gold that the Spanish found development of the Americas would be slower if it started in the north and moved south, rather than the other way round.
 
It seems likely that the English would mount an expedition at some point. The fishermen from Bristol where in Newfoundland and the Bristol merchants would want to exploit the resources of the New World or more likely try to find their way to India and the Pacific to get at the spices.

However without the run for gold that the Spanish found development of the Americas would be slower if it started in the north and moved south, rather than the other way round.

And who would be in change of the expedition? Cabot seems like the obvious choice, but could England hire someone else, and if so, who?
 
I suspect that Cabot would lead, if not apparently a man named Wiliam Weston was the first Brit to lead an expedition to the new world (and may have been one of Cabot's crew).

However given that all the fishermen where poping back and forth I would not have been suprised if an other captain was chosen by the Bristol merchants if Cabot had not shown up.
 
what would NA being explored from New Foundland and south from there (and prehaps to a lesser degree from Brazil and north since some portugese sailor who's name i've forgotten found it independently of Columbus a scant few years later) instead of Carribian out from them change?
 
see also
Spain denied Columbus?
MrNumbahOne

WI: Columbus doesn't make it back (
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AllActionMan

If No Columbus, what does Spain do? (
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Avitus



Columbus where he had traveled or history with geography. (
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Aley


1492 Columbus sank in the ocean blue
docfl

Failed Columbus - Effects on Europe?
Emperor-of-New-Zealand

Immediate Effects of Failed Columbus? (
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Beedok

WI: Columbus never arrived America?
Chörnyj Orel

WI: Columbus falls off the map
Amedras

WI: Columbus Failed? (
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TMS2224

Columbus Delayed
Grimm Reaper

WI: Cabot, not Columbus
John Fredrick Parker

WI: Columbus trusts Erostathenses?
Workable Goblin

WI - 1492, Indians Discover Columbus Lost At Sea.
Forever_found

WI Columbus Failed? (
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OneUp

Columbus Never Returns
Codae

Christopher Columbus lost at sea
Niceguy

Columbus turns back
Peter Cowan

WI Hurricane maxima at time of Columbus
NapoleonXIV

The ships of Columbus mutiny! (
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Darkest

Columbus gets his geography right
Dr Pervez Hoodbhoy

WI Columbus Fails
Fearless Leader


Plus half a dozen threads of him sailing for England, some of him sailing for France, a couple him sailing for Portugal, a small handful of him sailing for random places - like Brittany and Genoa; several of him headed a different direction, or making a different landfall.
 
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