The beginnings of the British Empire is immensly difficult to define; nonetheless, it is quite safe to say that the British were late-comers in the 'Empire-making business'. By the end of the 16th century; although, Sir Francis Drake had circumnavigated the globe, there were not a single permanent British colony or trading post outside Europe. The Portuguese; on the other  hand, had reached India as early as 1498, established trading posts all over South-East Asia, including the lucrative spice islands, and sailed as far afield as Japan. Spain did not waste her time either. By the time Henry VIII chopped off his fifth wife's head for alleged adultery, the Spaniard conquistadors conquered both the Aztec and the Inca Empires; thereby, firmly establish themselves in Central and South America. But their luck did not end there. In 1545 they found silver on an unimaginably large scale in Upper Peru (today Bolivia), and from then, gold and silver were pouring into Spain (or rather into the Spanish court to finance its wars). As for the British, they did not find gold for more than another one hundred years, and had no choice but to rob Spanish ships which was also politicly desirable. Two of these pirates, who were euphemistically called 'privateers', were Sir Francis Drake himself and Henry Morgan, later the Luitenant Governor of Jamaica.