The industrial revolution raised the stakes, increasing European demand for the raw materials (such as rubber, petroleum and tin) and commodities (like coffee, sugar, and tobacco) that Southeast Asia could supply. In the 19th century, the British fought their way to power on the Malay Peninsula and across Myanmar; the French, using gunboat diplomacy, took over Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos (collectively called French Indochina). The Spanish, meanwhile, had set their sights on the Philippines, then a diverse collection of islands with little political or cultural connection to each other. When they arrived in the 16th century they were able to impose rule – and Catholicism – in quick succession.