Apwh what enabled europeans to carve out huge empires an ocean away from their homelands

The main weapon that enabled the Europeans to conquer vast amounts of territories in distance lands was all the new sicknesses that were brought along with them. As stated in the book Guns, Germs and Steel written by Jared Diamond in 1997. The author explains that the Europeans had the technological advances of the era, such as gun powder, rifles, and cannons, but their most devastating weapon was the side effect of their presence, the presence of foreign bacteria to new populations.