Original sentence: Portuguese and Spanish power began to dilute with the rise of the Dutch, French and British empires.The British Empire.The Dutch Empire.The French Colonial Empire.The Portuguese Empire.The Spanish Empire.The first of these empires began with Portugal and Spain
Edited sentence: Caught between Spanish, Dutch & English empires.Dominant navy in late 17th century.Largest empire in history.Never quite made it to the big time.Over time Spain gained small parts of Africa and the Philippines.Portugal punched well above its weight to an extraordinary extent.Sheer audacity given the standards of its time.Spanish power began to dilute with the rise of the Dutch, French and British empires.The British Empire - Considered (by some) the first hyperpower, a superpower by others.The Dutch Empire - Focused primarily on trade, not territory.The French Colonial Empire- Frustrated.The Portuguese Empire- First wave of European maritime global expansion along with Spain.The Spanish Empire - To the 16th century what Britain's empire was to the 19th.The first of these empires began with Portugal and Spain the latter having the more territory as Spain held parts of Europe along with Mexico and Central America and most of South America