Alternate History: What if America was Never Colonized?

It has been a while since I did a what if but I spent a lot of time on this so I hope you all like it. Please let me know in the comments below what you think. This is a reupload as the first video an hour ago was broken. Please check my pages below and support me where you can. Subscribe to my channels and let me know what more you would like to see.
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[miratodc]

The portuguese king knew of Brazil before the treaty hence why the line covers it. Funny how 5 days after the treaty is signed the portuguese discovery a massive land mass on their side of the treaty lines lol

[DarthDragmire]

I really enjoy listening to your take on these “what if” scenarios, I hope you might have the time and interest in doing more for major events all throughout history.

[stakuyi]

Good it is now up properly, sorry about that the initial upload failed

[sleekoduck]

Fascinating take. I never thought of a reverse triangle slave trade developing with an Aztec empire before, but I could totally see that happening in an alternate universe!

[travist.]

Another possible scenario: What if the spread of disease had gone the other way? Instead of the Europeans bringing plagues to the Americas, they brought a plague back to their own continent. This would have greatly slowed European expansion, reducing it to mere trade. Eventually, the Aztecs or the Incas might have advanced to industrialization, or even democratic forms of government. Though the European countries had a technological head start, both European and American civilizations were about equal morally/culturally (remember the Spanish Inquisition?).

[ralphm.]

This was a great presentation. I'd like to see the same type done for Africa.

[AncientAmericas]

I've also thought about this a lot and I have to say that you nailed it. Well done!

[johnchance]

The part I really would like to look at more deeply is the nature of American civilization before the Europeans. Without livestock slavery, human sacrifice, and even cannibalism was more prominent in many places. But more than that the Americas also were highly technological. They produced the worlds first mega-cities. They also produced the world's biggest collapses. They developed truly huge networks of trade and new crops like corn . . . and then they didn't.

Many native cultures had a mythology that talked of circular time and it was based on historical fact. The Pre-classical Maya had truly huge cities that were lost to the jungle partially due to how much land they paved over and its impact on rain patterns. The Classical Maya may have collapsed due to a drought caused by cutting down too many trees. . . and when the Spanish arrived some cities still survived to start the pattern again.

We see the same thing with the "Finished People" in the southwest, with the Cahokia and the Mississippian mound builders. The Inca's look to break the trend and they were moving people around to develop a stable ethnic state much like China had long before; with the same sort of brutal "first empire' methods. The big thing the American civilizations lacked was the mellowing impact of the Persian empire and later Christianity/Islam.

They weren't backward when you exclude their access to livestock and how that made them susceptible to disease. The cotton age was every bit as important as the iron age in Europe, and native metal workers were much better at alloying gold with other metals even if they lacked knowledge of iron. But given your scenario they could LEARN iron working and trade for livestock from Europe, just as Europeans could trade for potatoes, Cotton, alloyed gold/silver goods, chocolate . . . and yes slaves for their sugar plantations.

The Meso/south American trade might be just as lucrative as that with China but the people they are trading with aren't NICE. Just because a culture got the short end of the stick in our history doesn't mean they are people you wouldn't WISH a gigantic plague on. The Mexica were definitely on their way out, but the Tlaxcala weren't any better and they allied with Europe to take over in OUR timeline. It's easy to imagine them forming a truly oppressive empire that was just as completely devoted to human sacrifice, self flagellation, and torture. The Maya would also have rebounded and being coastal they are getting the horse, the pig, even the chicken for their next round of super civilization and urban development.

Partition of the America's, at least in the south might be more like the colonization of India than what happened in Africa, or even the subjugation of China. Providing the Europeans could pull it off at all. Once the native empires see those big boats why wouldn't they try to build their own and perhaps reach Africa where the ivory Coast could be added to their traditionally vast trade networks? These are people who historically traded on a continental scale already so they have the experience to pull it off! What they lacked was the naval technology and the knowledge that other lands exist . . . Contact with Europe ends that ignorance.

Now the only thing standing in their way was that 90% die off, total collapse, and immigration from Europe replacing them; but you already put a great end to THAT scenario so . . .

[MilkJugA_]

I think the most interesting discussion regarding this is discussing the reasons why they were overran by the european powers. They were obviously less centralized than european states, with the more advanced civilizations with great cities mostly taking the form of city-state-like structures, making their military and administrative powers smaller. I think a big reason why the societies in the americas was small in scope, was that they didn't have horses or cows. No cows means a lot less food, as there is no milk, they can't help with farming crops, and you also can't eat them. No horses means a lot less effective mobility around the continents, meaning less trade, slower armies, worse supply lines for those armies, with everything needing humans instead of animals. Having common animals between America and Europe would hopefully also give immunity to diseases

[corvus]

The SM Stirling novel "Conquistador" is about an Americas that were never colonized. This is because Alexander the Great did not die young, he stabilized his empire, and it survived for centuries so stale that no industrialization or colonization was ever contemplated'

[connormurphy]

You deserve serious props for this video. It's hard to find decent alternate history on this site.

[Akaryusan]

i'll just put a smallpox vial on the time travel list

[TheGrinningViking]

I like "What if there were regular Viking trade routes"

Peaceful enough trade *with a civilization that bathed* in the North Americas would have left them much better prepared for what came later.

It's also quite reasonable to picture historically, as the reason the Viking settlement was established (walrus hunting) led to it's failure not because of disaster or ill planning, but because the market for walrus tusks fell rapidly as elephant ivory and whale bone came into fashion and the Vikings simply decided to leave.

Without a massive influx of poorer Europeans in the form of indentured prisoners there would likely have been a slower spread of disease as well, meaning all of the Americas would have the chance to deal with European plagues caused by overpopulation and poor sanitation one or two at a time instead of all at once.

[SaCamRan]

Your narration is amazing man, you really have the voice for this.

[justinbelflower]

This is really interesting stuff. Love your ability to hit so many possibilities and your explanations are always excellent. Thank you sir

[Raja-bzyw]

I think the Natives would modernize the US into different smaller countries like Europe. It would be like how Japan modernized without being invaded.

[EdKennedyV]

I saw your TikTok covering this, and jumped immediately to YouTube to find this video. Just subscribed, can’t wait for more content!

[DivanGeyser-wl]

Not many people know about the Vikings in North America, even fewer people know about the Polynesians in South America. But it's the way that history would most likely be drastically changed if those settlements weren't abandoned. It's crazy how the possibility of one Viking or Polynesian coughing or even just sneezing while on American soil could have flipped the entire world as we know it on its head.

[carlalmer]

Thanks for the video! Do note that the flotsam that Columbus’s crew see, had already been observed by Iberian fishermen for decades as they fish further out and *discovered* the Azores and Madeiras. That there were islands “out there” was not disputed by fishermen and sailors. Columbus interviews them for years to gather evidence as he tries to convince his sovereigns, the kings of Portugal, fund his proposal. Eventually he turns to Castile frustrated, is turned down as well and was in his way to England when Isabel calls him back.

[PrimericanIdol]

Better yet, what if the Europeans had instead dealt with the American civilizations in the same way they interacted with Japan? Trading, etc. Instead of outright conquest, assimilation, and/or ethnic cleansing.