When you discover undeveloped land in a Minor Nation containing resources you covet, it's a good idea to make a plan for exploiting it.

You can conquer the province or you could buy the land. Either way, you will need to develop the tile with a Builder, and connect the tile to a port with the Engineer. 

If the coveted resources are riches, you will make more money at first if you conquer the province than if you buy the land. (See related topic “Riches”). So why buy the land and exploit it peacefully? Well, military conquest is expensive. You need to make the troops and continue to feed them. You need to pay for the cost of mounting the attack. You need to make enough troops to defend your homeland as well as your conquests. 

You can take advantage of the most land by using a mix of military and mercantile strategies.