Sir Walter Raleigh, the well-known 17th-century British explorer and favourite courtier of Queen Elizabeth I, famously said: "Whoever commands the sea, commands the trade; whosoever commands the trade of the world commands the riches of the world, and consequently the world itself."
The big powers then - such as the Portuguese, Dutch and British - wanted to be masters and commanders of the high seas and spice was one of the most prized commodities.
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