So Spanish colonization of the New World, while starting out similarly to future colonization models, got a huge shot in the arm with the efforts of the conquistadors Cortes and Pizarro. Their conquests of the Aztecs and Inca pretty much expanded the Spanish colonial empire virtually overnight, as instead of settling "terra nullius" (nevermind that most colonies had their native populations decimated by disease) they took over existing empires, integrated their existing infrastructures to an extent, and turned to resource extraction especially of precious metals as colonial policy.
However, both Cortes and Pizarro got astoundingly lucky when they launched their campaigns. The Triple Alliance was largely disliked throughout what would become Mexico, as their domination of the region earned them the ire of their neighbors including the Tlaxcala. Cortes found allies among this group, easing the way for a conquest. Pizarro not only arrived in a Empire that was beginning to feel the effects of the Columbian Exchange, yet was even luckier as he and his crew arrived in South America just as a succession crisis loomed in the Tahuantinsuyu. Taking advantage of the chaos, and making efficient use of their technological force multipliers, Pizarro and crew managed to win at Cajamarca, and begun a piecemeal conquest of the vast Inca Empire.
So what if the Conquistradors were far less lucky than in OTL? Would the Spanish colonial empire have expanded as quickly? Would their colonization model be closer to the subsequent English or French models?
However, both Cortes and Pizarro got astoundingly lucky when they launched their campaigns. The Triple Alliance was largely disliked throughout what would become Mexico, as their domination of the region earned them the ire of their neighbors including the Tlaxcala. Cortes found allies among this group, easing the way for a conquest. Pizarro not only arrived in a Empire that was beginning to feel the effects of the Columbian Exchange, yet was even luckier as he and his crew arrived in South America just as a succession crisis loomed in the Tahuantinsuyu. Taking advantage of the chaos, and making efficient use of their technological force multipliers, Pizarro and crew managed to win at Cajamarca, and begun a piecemeal conquest of the vast Inca Empire.
So what if the Conquistradors were far less lucky than in OTL? Would the Spanish colonial empire have expanded as quickly? Would their colonization model be closer to the subsequent English or French models?