Conquistadors (pron.: /kɒn.ˈkiːstədɔrz/; from Spanish conquistadores [koŋkistaˈðoɾes], "conquerors") were soldiers, explorers, and adventurers at the service of the Spanish Empire and Portuguese Empire. The name derived from the Reconquista (completed in 1492), the reconquest of the territory of the Iberian Peninsula that had been controlled by various Muslim states (known through much of that time as Al-Andalus). They sailed beyond Europe, conquering territory and opening trade routes. They colonized much of the world for Spain and Portugal in the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries.