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>Europe didn’t send its best people, but disease, better weapons and toxic politics carried the age.

It was mostly disease. The muskets at the time were tragic. A properly trained infantry soldier could fire at most 4 rounds per minute.



The muskets (arquebuses) used by the Spanish conquistadors in the 16th century were even slower than that. They were lucky to fire 2 rounds per minute. But they also had crossbows, steel weapons, armor, and horses — as well as tactical doctrine which completely outclassed any of the primitive New World civilizations.

But disease did wipe out the majority of their adversaries, so they had a relatively easy time dealing with the survivors.


Also horses. I wouldn’t envy a soldier with a stone/mica blade facing a mounted, armored cavalryman with a steel sword.




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