How does the development of maritime empires compare with the development of land based empires in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries?

The best answer that captures the comparison between the development of maritime empires and land-based empires in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries is:

**D. The maritime empires focused on control of trade routes in the Indian Ocean rather than the control of people and land.**

Maritime empires, such as those established by Spain, Portugal, and later by the Dutch and the British, were primarily concerned with trade and commerce. They sought to control trade routes and ports to facilitate the exchange of goods, rather than establishing large territories with populations to govern in the same way that land-based empires did. In contrast, land-based empires, like the Ottoman and Mughal empires, emphasized territorial expansion and the administration of vast swathes of land and peoples.