The very lucrative Spice Trade which made countries fight one another

Merchants from the East controlled the sale of spices to Europe.

The European explorers were in search of new lands to discover. They also wanted to know where spices came from. These spices made food taste so much better. The Portuguese, Dutch and later the British would sail past the Cape of Good Hope in Africa towards Asia and later Southeast Asia where the spices were grown. 

Spices were found in the Far East and the trade was controlled by merchants from India. The Europeans wanted to go to the South East Asian islands where spices were grown.

The different types of masted ships that European powers built to cross the oceans.

Ships got bigger and more well-armed with cannons for battle.

A Roman vessel from the 3rd century and a 17th century Dutch ship

Add caption