Did the big maritime empires of the 16-19th century such as the French, British, Spanish and such have "eyesight quality" tests, and requirements accordingly? Or was one man's ability to see a ship in the distance not important as a hole tripulation of near-sighted people was highly improbable?

by the_red_screwdriver
jschooltiger

No, not at all. There was no qualifying examination for men in the naval service in Britain other than the fact that some could be refused by the ship’s surgeon on grounds of illness or insanity, but during the manning crises that accompanied wartime mobilization those would be ignored. The problem for Britain was not excluding men from service, but having enough to meet their immense needs, so much so that forced service (impressment) was a regular feature of naval life.