In 1494, Portugal and Spain signed the Treaty of Tordesillas, an agreement that divided newly discovered and yet-to-be-discovered lands outside Europe between the two kingdoms.
The arrangement was rather ambitious, considering neither country had actually explored most of what they were dividing.
Portugal, however, had a plan.
While Spain concentrated much of its attention on the Americas, the Portuguese sailed around Africa, established maritime routes to India, reached Brazil, and built trading networks stretching from Europe to Asia.
For a relatively small country with a modest population, Portugal managed to become one of the most influential maritime powers in the world.
Of course, this expansion also came with conquest, exploitation, and some rather questionable interpretations of international diplomacy. Apparently, arriving somewhere by boat and planting a flag was considered sufficient paperwork at the time.
Nevertheless, the Portuguese demonstrated something remarkable: you don't necessarily need to be the largest nation to have an enormous impact on the world. Sometimes, knowing where you're going matters more than how much territory you already possess.
Spain, naturally, insists that bigger is always better.
A rather suspicious obsession with measurements, if you ask me.