Assertion: portuguese empire | /r/CapableOf | grant merchant ships protection
Facets:
value: against rival states
type: TRANSITIVE-OBJECT
value: against pirates
type: TRANSITIVE-OBJECT
Source sentences:
text: In 1502, to enforce its trade monopoly over a wide area of the Indian Ocean, the Portuguese Empire created the cartaz licensing system, granting merchant ships protection against pirates and rival states.