Complex sentence: The Moors' long held monopoly over the cinnamon trade, and the circuitous and largely overland route by which it was transported to Europe and the Mediterranean added greatly to its cost and encouraged a Portuguese takeover in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth century.
Split into simpler sentences: The Moors' long-held monopoly over the cinnamon trade, and the circuitous and largely overland route by which it was transported to Europe and the Mediterranean, added greatly to its cost. It encouraged a Portuguese takeover in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth century.