During the 5th century BC, Athens was for a time the leading power in the eastern Mediterranean. In the west, Carthage was the major sea power until it was destroyed by the Romans in 146 BC, Rome itself being compelled to become a maritime empire in the process.

In northern Europe, the Norsemen were intrepid sailors but they were raiders rather than traders. Nevertheless, they reached as far west as Greenland and "Vinland" (which may have been the coast of modern Newfoundland). They raided the coasts of Britain during the Roman occupation causing the appointment of the Count of the saxon Shore, charged with protecting the roman colony from their raids.

In the Middle Ages, the mediterranean trade was dominated by the Genoese and Venetians until the discovery of America which gave the western countries of Portugal and Spain a natural advantage in trade with the New World.

see also: Ship