<P> The historical phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time . Modern state global colonialism , or imperialism , began in the 15th century with the `` Age of Discovery '' , led by Portuguese and Spanish exploration of the Americas , the coasts of Africa , the Middle East , India and East Asia . The Spanish and Portuguese empires were the first global empires because they were the first to stretch across different continents , covering vast territories around the globe . In 1492 , notable explorer Christopher Columbus `` discovered '' America . The phrase `` the empire on which the sun never sets '' was first used for the Spanish Empire in the 16th century . During the late 16th and 17th centuries , England , France and the Dutch Republic also established their own overseas empires , in direct competition with each other . The end of the 18th and early 19th century saw the first era of decolonization , when most of the European colonies in the Americas gained their independence from their respective metropoles . Spain was irreversibly weakened after the loss of their New World colonies , but the Kingdom of Great Britain ( uniting Scotland with England and Wales ) , France , Portugal , and the Dutch turned their attention to the Old World , particularly South Africa , India and South East Asia , where coastal enclaves had already been established . The second industrial revolution , in the 19th century , led to what has been termed the era of New Imperialism , when the pace of colonization rapidly accelerated , the height of which was the Scramble for Africa , in which Belgium , Germany and Italy were also participants . </P>
<P> The historical phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time . Modern state global colonialism , or imperialism , began in the 15th century with the `` Age of Discovery '' , led by Portuguese and Spanish exploration of the Americas , the coasts of Africa , the Middle East , India and East Asia . The Spanish and Portuguese empires were the first global empires because they were the first to stretch across different continents , covering vast territories around the globe . In 1492 , notable explorer Christopher Columbus `` discovered '' America . The phrase `` the empire on which the sun never sets '' was first used for the Spanish Empire in the 16th century . During the late 16th and 17th centuries , England , France and the Dutch Republic also established their own overseas empires , in direct competition with each other . The end of the 18th and early 19th century saw the first era of decolonization , when most of the European colonies in the Americas gained their independence from their respective metropoles . Spain was irreversibly weakened after the loss of their New World colonies , but the Kingdom of Great Britain ( uniting Scotland with England and Wales ) , France , Portugal , and the Dutch turned their attention to the Old World , particularly South Africa , India and South East Asia , where coastal enclaves had already been established . The second industrial revolution , in the 19th century , led to what has been termed the era of New Imperialism , when the pace of colonization rapidly accelerated , the height of which was the Scramble for Africa , in which Belgium , Germany and Italy were also participants . </P>
who began the active colonization in the new land
who began the active colonization in the new land
Portuguese Spanish
Portuguese Spanish