What if BRAZIL Was A Great Power?

Brazil is the largest country in South America, as well as the most populated and richest. A center of culture with the world-famous Carnival and Christ the Redeemer, it has a long and vibrant history. Despite this however, Brazil is still a middling country in terms of economic equality and prosperity, and punches far below the weight that you would expect from it if you were speculating in the 1830s. The reasons for this are complicated - a vile history of slavery, political instability and authoritarianism in the 20th century, and the less said about US involvement during the Cold War the better. But, like I said, during the 19th century the future looked incredibly bright for Brazil, with a highly progressive constitution and many nations expecting it to become a great power like the burgeoning United States. Which begs the question - what if Brazil did become that Great Power?

[@stefanofialho5484]

Awesome video, also, the start is basically your average Brazillian Victoria 2 campaign.

[@frouzennogehenna2665]

As a Brazillian im so happy about this scenario!!

[@danielsantiagourtado3430]

YES! LONG LIVE THE EMPIRE 🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷

[@DruggiePlays]

We want Cisplatina back?

[@Alionsmess]

@@DruggiePlaysi dont know. Yea? No?

[@yossifhadad]

20:33 your explaintion of emperial brazil's democracy and liberalisem is very fascinating in a way that i can't explain. brazilians in this alternate history are the kind of people who will never fully understand how patriotic and nationalistic they are until they leave their empire and interact with other cultures who have a very negative opinion of strong governments.

[@AlternosMundos]

Now here's a fun thought experiment- how might the Brazilian school be exported to other countries like formosa?

[@yossifhadad]

​george orwell 1984 type stuff XD @@AlternosMundos

[@eduardomelo151]

@@AlternosMundos Taiwanese Senai. The dream vargas never knew he even had

[@lukaz_evengard5562]

14:21 while the ideia is fun to imagine, the idea that Uruguay would remain spanish speaking is quite impossible, i might be wrong but Uruguay only has like 40k people in 1822 end if Brazil kept it they would most likely have been assimilated Edit: other thing the ownership of Uruguay would most likely lock Brazil end Argentina in war for control of the region

[@AlternosMundos]

Admittedly, I probably should've looked into that, especially in a non-federal state

[@tubumafu232]

​​@@AlternosMundos i think that Brazil would be in the German side because the Brazilian Royal family was related to willheim II of germany and there was a plan to restore the monarchy in Brazil after ww1 and Brazil propably wouldn't ally with France because they tryed to steal land from Brazil só many times (Sorry for the bad english)

[@AlternosMundos]

@@tubumafu232 I went with the entente because Germany OTL was more expansionist into Latin America after the 1870s, and while the royal family was related to the germans, that didn't stop britain or russia. And the english is completely fine, dw

[@kyronlaube6657]

Brasil is a great power!

[@ImTitan16]

What if aaron burr actually made his own country

[@Gabowsk]

Just a small correction I must make as a Brazilian. If Uruguay was maintained as a part of the brazilian realm, extensive programs of lusophonization would take place in places like Montevidéu and Chuí. So it's unlikely that by the 1910's Uruguay has such a large spanish population, especially considering a much larger immigration phase.

[@AlternosMundos]

@@Gabowsk yeah, admittedly that was an oversight. My thinking was more or less that in the Americas there were relatively few attempts to erode other European languages (native languages however...) but even so that's faulty logic

[@danielsantiagourtado3430]

love your content! Much suppoort from LATAM 🇨🇴🇨🇴🇨🇴🇨🇴🇨🇴

[@EternalZoroark]

Honestly one of the most interesting scenarios on your channel so far ngl. Also I'd really love to see this scenario with Italy. Especially considering the various routes you could take.

[@AlternosMundos]

Italy is much stronger in the reconstruction tl for what that's worth, but I do intend on a video actually ABOUT them

[@EternalZoroark]

@ I'd like that. Especially considering that there's so many jumping off points. -PH's Garibaldinian Italy -Italy decides to federalize instead of being a unitary monarchy, leading to the south not being neglected -Italy being a Central Power -Italo Balbo rising to power instead of Mussolini -Fascist Italy not being alles with Germany

[@Jacorn_on_the_Cob]

Great video! Would love to see a part two of this scenario

[@pedrocosta2183]

Brazil is the country of the future and always will be.

[@CahokiaOfficial]

Another banger!

[@adrianm.9627]

could you do a video like this but about mexico, I know that is more far fetched than brazil. but mexico is kinda overlooked in the alternate history community & it would be kinda cool to see how a Mexican empire could compete with the USA. also, great video 😃

[@brandoasan5639]

So what if Maximilian stayed in power

[@AlternosMundos]

Ehh, Maximilian was a French client ruler.youd need to go back to colonial rule to ensure Mexico is a great power (tho tbf I did kinda do that here.)

[@brandoasan5639]

@@AlternosMundos for that to work I think the Spanish needed to act more like the British empire when it came to colonialism. Give the colonials more freedom and actually allowing them to read.

[@adrianm.9627]

@@brandoasan5639 tbh i think they could have held on to far more territory than what they ended up with, if iturbide had accepted a constitution it would have at least kept the republicans in check & the centroamericans from secceding. but that would have required iturbide to be less bad at ruling.

[@SNCY29]

Very good. Reminds of the possible history’s “what if everything went right for” and that’s my favriote series for his channel. So basically I’d like to see more of these videos for different countries?

[@AlternosMundos]

I do have a 2 parter about Egypt becoming a great power if these videos are up your alley!

[@SNCY29]

@ Yh have watched them. Maybe a series is in order? Maybe like italy or Russia next

[@coisasale763]

Hi, politically positivism is more about a secular, republican state, understanding society through the scientific method, etc. There was no need to keep Dom Pedro II's son alive, Princess Isabel was very competent and her husband was a good military and diplomatic organizer. Good video, I'm Brazilian

[@coisasale763]

William II considered Dom Pedro II his family so there would be no such enmity, in addition to the Brazilian royal house having many dynastic connections with Austria.

[@AlternosMundos]

Hello- thank you for the feedback! Admittedly, because Pedro didn't think the public would accept an Empress ruling them I went the afonso route. Wilhelm also considered Nicholas II his family, but Germany and Russia still went to blows. Germany's expansionism is the problem

[@coisasale763]

Princess Isabel had almost total support from conservatives and former slaves, because she was a devout Catholic and had freed the slaves. And the German Empire actually even tried to restore the Brazilian Monarchy, and due to the strong connection with Austria in particular, I think it is very unlikely that Brazil would be pro-Entente.

[@AlixelienicolasDelice]

Brazil 🇧🇷

[@furinick]

I love this genre of content where brazilians dream of what we could have been

[@blade8741]

"vibrant and colorful" Me looking at what we did to Paraguay: yeah... We are very vibrant and colorful.

[@Tracer_Krieg]

One thing to note on your video editing: I've noticed the last several have their starts chopped off midsentence.

[@AlternosMundos]

Having checked this and a couple others, i think part of it is both me still being a little awkward on script reading, and because YT does this thing where if you hover over a video on the recommendations, it'll play a silent version of it, which sill counts as progression if you click in? I might add a bit of a buffer to the start though.

[@tusken5536]

Could you do a video on if the uk had a major colony in South America

[@noobymooby-ty8gh]

Brazil really missed out on a lot of chances to become a great power it, pains me.

[@AlternosMundos]

Honestly there wasn't one single point of failure imo, since even the republic probably wasn't doomed on arrival

[@Alionsmess]

@@AlternosMundosyes there was. A guy called Irineu Evangelista was a brazillian during the empire that indistrialized Brazil, but then, the people said to the emperor that he wanted to overthrow him, and then he went bankrupt and it took way longer to become industrial. Slavery also wasnt the best. If Brazil industrialized earlier, they couldve tried to be better in the military of stability or education during the time that brazil ACTUALLY went industrial. So thats the main reason (i think) that brazil wasnt a superpower. It shouldve been a long time ago.

[@ImperatorArchangelus]

Incrível... :0

[@AlternosMundos]

por que obrigado!

[@ImperatorArchangelus]

@AlternosMundos :)

[@japdeepgill7386]

Can you do an alternate history of the sikh empire, and how it could be a French ally, and potentially kick the British out of India or atleast not be colonized by them?

[@brineo]

cool idea

[@Jamhael1]

There was, in fact, a plan for the Portuguese royal family to move to Brazil 100 years prior to the Napoleonic Wars. A more appropriate event to help in said move is the Lisbon Earthquake in the 18th century.

[@ChaitanyaSharma-w5f]

Nice video, sir. I have a video suggestion for you. What if Benito Mussolini was a competent leader. I have several points of divergences where he could have recreated the roman empire.

[@AlternosMundos]

I actually have a video where Mussolini is more successful by almost complete accident on my end - in my reconstruction sequel, Italy isn't betrayed after ww1 but he still comes to power, and is able to establish his own power bloc. While I might come back to it later, I've already given my thoughts pretty recently

[@GottaGoBoom]

Interesting video, though i have to say that if brazil were to be more agressive torwards its neighbourghs i doubt that it only keep uruguay, it would probably expanding torwards the argentinians if possibile getting all the productive arable lands from argentina and if nationalism was strong enough, its even more possible brazil copies manifest destiny, and annexes argentina and chile to achieve that goal, also one over looked aspect was paraguay which had started the largest war in the continent during that time period, and this wouldnt change, paraguayan leadership wouldve started a war with argentina, but instead of brazil defending argentina after getting invaded by paraguay, its possible they strike a deal with them where in brazil acquires mesopotamia, and paraguay is given navigation rights and backing from brazil to expand west wards into bolivia, also a brazilian manifest destiny would be a really useful tool to acquire new immigrants by giving away land on the pampas which is some of the most fertile soil in the world, meaning that alot of brazilians and europan immigrants migrate there, leading to a southern brazil which expands all the way to patagonia and chile, but with none of the slaves, meaning that the brazilian westwards expansion would create the same northern southern divide as the US, this would make alot more sense since argentina is filled with really good soil, and seeing it self less populated and weaker compared to a major power brazil, would make them prime for the taking, anyway this was alot, good video and i hope to see more in the future

[@DrVictorVasconcelos]

Argentina was way too rich for that. No way that would work.

[@embracedsilence9926]

Well if it gives you any idea the only political group you probably know about that was heavily influenced by positivism was the Young Turks. As in the early 20th century cadre of Ottoman militarists not the news group. Well technically the Committee of Union and Progress but basically most Young Turks were a part of that organization.

[@CahokiaOfficial]

What if Germany focused more on its alliance with Russia instead of Austria?

[@lljkgktudjlrsmygilug]

You may as well have the German Empire unite the Austrian (And probably Slovak portion) in the 1860s or 1870s at that point. Solves the question of why prioritizing one over the other is more preferential. Also, Italy would probably align with Germany in WW1 if such a war starts, though the trigger would have to be something else.

[@arthurbriand2175]

19:23 France becoming fascist during a february 1934 coup would be interesting. They may not appease and attack Germany in 1936 or 1938 when they still had military advantage and allies in Czechia

[@Roderico-y5v]

yey uruguay mentioned

[@wandy3606]

Actually slavery is a factor, but is not just slavery. (English is not my main language, before anythin.) Nº1:The Empire hard control on railroad expansion made the industrial sector had a very slow expansion. To change this you have to change Dom Pedro II in a large way. Or make his son have a better relationship with the industrial class. Nº2: The agriculture barons made industrial and railroad expansion very dificult ot not lose grip in power so, even without Dom Pedro II, the way he ignored many things in the end of his life because he was already to old and pessimistic. His son could change the balance of power betwen the different political parties in brasil. Nº3: Colonies in africa is a very bad idea. Brasil had bad connections with good part of his territory. A colonial brasil would slow down progress from what is todaym very important states in the interior of brasil, hurting brasilian economy in the long run. The focus in this period shold be expansion of brasilian railroads to Mato Grosso, Goias and the entrance of Amazonas. So raw materials could be extracted from there. Brazil don't need to colonize. They could incentivize african population to enter the country as immigrants and not slaves. But would be out of touch for them to do it in the relevant period as racism, even not bein like in the U.S, was big and people in power would want imigration from europe, china and japan. Like in the normal brazilian timeline Nº4: A war betwen argentina and brazil would probably never happen. And if it happens, would not be a stalemate. But a swap. The brasilian navy under the empire was a top 5 navy in the world, and the reason why they stoped being was the navy being to pro monarchy and being defunded. Brazil would not need a naval blockade help from U.K. They would have their own japanese size navy. Probably not to big, but state of art ships. The second thing, The map distortion don't let people understand how big would be the frontline in comparison with european ones. Argentina frontline would be much more similar to a Russian one, to big to dig trenchs all over the place. And the lack of firepower and equipment compared to great powers means an mass atack would be much more advantageous to the attacker. Probably the sheer army size alone would push the before any real fortification could take place and argentina would never try to gamble that and have their capital bombarded with a ton of ships. Nº5: Brasil would probably not be a democracy if they took this long to become one. Dom Pedro II was deposed for the agrarian elite. The people loved him. Brasilian aproval of the monarchy was high, but with the changes you propose in this video. the elite who deposed the monarchy would be to weak to do somenthing about. The brasil would want to have a constitutional monarchy similar to the german one. Nº6: The 1950 50 years in 5, building brasilia is economical nightmare. Since them brasil had a large debt that they keep them getting more debt to repay the debt, making a larger debt. Because no one wanted to waste their presidency and time repaying the debts. Brasilia needs to never be build. Nº7: The political instability and the meaningless of the constitution means it's very risk to invest in Brazil. A lot of the time politicians just change the lawns to excrude foregin companies, than they just leave. They claim to favor national industries, but they tax the national industries the same. Making the local market never grow and the foregner market never invest in them.

[@AlternosMundos]

HI! don't worry the english was completely fine. i'll keep my response more or less focused to the parts i actually have to responses for. 1- this is a good point, though i'd argue that with weaker agricultural elites unable to dominate the economic policy, there could be some growth anyway. 2- I assumed they'd be weakened enough by the earlier decline of slavery to prevent this 3- I absolutely agree, Brazil wouldn't really bother, but I more or less pointed it out as something portugal would be justified in worrying about more than anything. 4- Gotcha; In my head, I still had argentina as the main rival to local influence, so i wanted to have the war more or less for "completeness" of the scenerio, but I do see why it's implausible when you point it out. 5- I would argue that brazil is a democracy, just not a conventional one. think of it sort of like how King George remained relevant to the british parliament even as voting was expanding and the PM was increasingly taking over matters of state. 6 and 7 I think would be more or less butterflied

[@pampanamonick7076]

Teriamos a Deca

[@oscarjobe1099]

Great video bro. I got a question and I mean no offense, but why use the f-word, I don’t have a problem with it but I just don’t hear is being used in other alt history channels

[@AlternosMundos]

I just swear more as a person tbh

[@oscarjobe1099]

Cool cool makes sense

[@waltercommunitycollege1615]

What if the Russian Empire industrialized at the same time as Britain?

[@reflectiveflame830]

do this for Pakistan pls

[@JFVTHEVILLAINOUS]

What if my music was actually good and not 70 loops with effects on them🤔

[@AlternosMundos]

... have you seen how many pages I reuse?

[@JFVTHEVILLAINOUS]

@AlternosMundos 😂 fair fair

[@bulletman6352]

I enjoyed the cussing

[@DruggiePlays]

Huehue? Brbr?

[@TheWatchPartyForever]

Why are you using Wiki as a primary sources. Is more better used to find primary sources cause they’re pretty bad at covering more obscure facts with accuracy.

[@AlternosMundos]

With this video specifically I did try to get other sources, but most stuff more detailed than wiki was in Portuguese.

[@SouthDakotaFacts]

Wdym “what if”? BRASIL NUMBER UNO 🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷 WTF IS “CRIME FREE” 🔥🔥🦅🦅🦅🦅🦅🦅🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷

[@someguy9175]

I wish there was a capybara emoji exactly for this. 🇧🇷🇧🇷🦜🦜OQ CRL É ECONOMIA!!!!! 🦜🦜🇧🇷🇧🇷

[@pampanamonick7076]

Teriamos a Deca

[@AlternosMundos]

"We would go to ten"? I'm not sure I follow