WI the Portuguese discovered the Brouwer Route?

The VOC found out how to use the roaring 40s from South Africa to cross the Indian Ocean, saving a year on the round trip compared to the monsoon route used by the Portuguese. As a result the Dutch encountered the west Australia coast and by 1644 they had a good map of over half of the Australian coast, but made no settlement.

WI the Portuguese discovered the southern route and the Australian coast?
 
The VOC found out how to use the roaring 40s from South Africa to cross the Indian Ocean, saving a year on the round trip compared to the monsoon route used by the Portuguese. As a result the Dutch encountered the west Australia coast and by 1644 they had a good map of over half of the Australian coast, but made no settlement.

WI the Portuguese discovered the southern route and the Australian coast?

I doubt the Portuguese would do much more than the Dutch, especially since their holdings in the Indies were far less. An Australian settlement is basically nothing but a stopover point for the East Indies for the first century or so. The Dutch had far more reasons for that than the Portuguese did.
 
I think the Portuguese were more acquisitive than the Dutch in general, concerned about crusading against the Turk, finding Prester John and defending the faith against the heathen while in the process getting the riches of the East. If they found Australia I could imagine they might build a fort somewhere for these reasons and use it as a waypoint, particularly as their power in the area declines.
 
I think the Portuguese were more acquisitive than the Dutch in general, concerned about crusading against the Turk, finding Prester John and defending the faith against the heathen while in the process getting the riches of the East. If they found Australia I could imagine they might build a fort somewhere for these reasons and use it as a waypoint, particularly as their power in the area declines.
Prester John had been found by then and proved to be fairly useless.

Portugal was about controlling the knots of trade, as they didn't have the resources for a territorial empire.

If Australia is out of trade networks, we don't care about it basically
 
There might be some missionary activity, but that's about it. Portugal was already spread way too thin to take on another major colonial project.
 
I wouldn't think that any effort would be major, maybe a mission would be it. It might gain in importance after setbacks in other areas. However you know what these Europeans are like, once someone gets something they all want it.
 
There might be some missionary activity, but that's about it. Portugal was already spread way too thin to take on another major colonial project.

Not really, considering they just would need to divert resources away from Brazil which sucked up the majority of people, considering Portugal sent an insane amount of people there. Unlike elsewhere in the world, there would be no competing powers besides the Dutch (maybe).

Herding Aboriginals into missions is probably going to be their main goal. Other than that, growing food/making wine for ships going to the Indies. It really hurts Portugal's case that their holdings there were so small. There's also sandalwood to be harvested, as well as a plant called bloodroot (Haemodorum spicatum), which is noted for its extreme spicyness and use as a dye. The Jarrah tree is extremely useful for its wood. That's basically your Western Australian colonial economy.

Considering the Dutch made poor colonisers compared to the Portuguese, I'd also expect the Portuguese to colonise Île Saint Paul and Île Amsterdam, which lie directly on the Brouwer Route. They are somewhat marginal but perfectly liveable, and it's rather odd they were never successfully colonised in OTL. Their main purpose would to be a stopver point on the way to Australia, or at the very least, help rescue castaways who frequently wrecked on those islands. This would probably be after the Western Australia outpost is established. Islands further south in the Indian Ocean like Kerguelen are a possibility too (later on, with whaling/sealing and further development of the Clipper Route), but I think that would be a bit of the "remote island wank" scenario I'm fond of. However, the idea of the Portuguese as leaders of Antarctic exploration is very cool and would further cement the historic reputation of the Portuguese as the greatest nation of explorers.

I wouldn't think that any effort would be major, maybe a mission would be it. It might gain in importance after setbacks in other areas. However you know what these Europeans are like, once someone gets something they all want it.

Seems more like someone would move into Eastern Australia if the Portuguese are squeezing any sort of value out of Western Australia.
 
There's also sandalwood to be harvested

A lot of it in the early days, a good little earner for a fort/mission.
Sandalwood_harvest.jpg
 
There might be some missionary activity, but that's about it. Portugal was already spread way too thin to take on another major colonial project.
If it's missionaries you might end up with a strong French present. A lot of Jesuits were French, and established ties, like in Vietnam
 
The sandalwood trade was one of the last important Portuguese ventures in Asia, particularly during the post 1640 period, lasting until the end of the 18th century. The wood was highly prized in China due to its aromatic nature and used in ceremonies. The Portuguese were the leading supplier to the Chinese market until the 1830s, with most of it being traded via Macau. It is interesting, that this was really the last commodity that the Portuguese were able to control in Asia, beating out the Dutch. There were dangers of the supplies being exhausted during the 18th century, and during the early 18th century the Portuguese depended on an uneasy alliance of mestiço traders, called Topasses in Timor. Portuguese authority over these local rulers was never very strong, and often they were unwilling to submit to anything more than nominal suzerainty. In 1701-1708 there was an attempt to impose direct rule by Goa over Timor, with the Portuguese sending a royal governor to Lifau (located in the present-day Oecussi-Ambeno enclave). The Topasses were not only a threat to the Portuguese, but also to the Dutch in Kupang. The VOC actually considered abandoning Timor completely during the mid-18th century, due to the lack of revenue, and high cost of garrisoning Kupang.

The establishment of a trading factory in Western Australia would probably need to be around Southeast Australia where the aromatic Santalum Spicatum. It is not as suitable for carving as the wood found in Timor, but the roots of the trees of this species are the most valuable for the incense oil. The result being that the trees have to be pulled out by horse (or camel), rather than chopped down. This would require some sort of settlement be undertaken in the long-term. What sort is the question, the Estado da India governed the Indian Ocean territories and did undertake a plan to settle Mozambique during the late-17th century, sending several hundred families from the Azores to Mozambique. They might try something similar in Western Australia, with the intent being to harvest the trees, and establish some agriculture to self-sustain the fort. I would imagine that the 1670-1750 period would be the most likely for the establishment of factory/settlement in the region.
 
They might try something similar in Western Australia, with the intent being to harvest the trees, and establish some agriculture to self-sustain the fort. I would imagine that the 1670-1750 period would be the most likely for the establishment of factory/settlement in the region.

For that to happen they'd have to make the discoveries and claims that IOTL the Dutch made, but use them in their own fashion.

I think sandalwood could be a key commodity to drive a lodgement ashore, even if only in short term camps. The captain of the Arnhem specifically noted the lack of sandalwood n his 1623 mission to the NT, but we know that there are economically viable sandalwood areas in WA.

WA%20sandalwood%20map.png
 
The stocks of sandalwood in Timor were declining by the late 17th century, and this is what led Goa to impose direct rule in Timor in 1701. This period coincided with the resurgence of Portugal's economic wealth, and for that reason I would imagine that the establishment of any sort of fort/settlement would occur during the early 18th century.

Though it is often easy to assume that Portugal's colonial interests were focused exclusively on Brazil after 1640, this was not the case. Despite having been overtaken by the British and Dutch, Portuguese trade in the Indies, the intra-Asian trade was still an important source of revenue to the crown. Macau was especially important as it remained the most important outlet for Chinese exports to Europe until the mid-18th century. Considering that sandalwood was often the most common form of payment for the Portuguese to acquire tea, silk, porcelains etc, it's trade was certainly important to the Portuguese. Indeed, the trade in Macau was so significant, that it wouldn't be until around 1717 when the British export of tea (from Macau), exceeded the Portuguese in tonnage. The Portuguese trade in the region was only reduced to insignificance around 1810.

As things stood, the Portuguese probably had no real idea of sandalwood in Australia. If they had been using the Brouer Route, the eventual knowledge of sandalwood in the region might have made the Portuguese authorities in Goa attempt some sort of trading post/small settlement in Australia. More likely than not, any attempt at settlement would have been preceded by a period of exploratory missions. I imagine that an attempt to bring a branch of leaves of sandalwood to Australia and try to have the inhabitants there trade it with them. Tobacco might have been used as a trading commodity, as Brazilian tobacco (mostly as snuff) was making inroads in China during the early 18th century.
 
The beauty of WA sandalwood is that it is more or less free, either the ships crews go scrounging for it or they trade with the local aborigines for trinkets.
 
This thread has got me thinking I should plant a sandalwood tree or two at my place, or my next place since I want to move next year.
 
This is the oldest building in Australia, Wiebbe Hayes Fort, built in 1629 on the Houtman Abrolhos Islands by a group of soldiers from the wreck of the Batavia and subsequent horrific atrocities, terror and fighting. The soldiers were the goodies and won in the end.

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