However, Spain attempted to stop the Portuguese advance in Asia, by claiming the meridian line ran around the world, dividing the whole world in half rather than just the Atlantic. Portugal pushed back, seeking another papal pronouncement that limited the line of demarcation to the Atlantic.

Feb 5, 2025 · In theory, the Treaty of Tordesillas divided the New World into Spanish and Portuguese spheres of influence. The treaty amended papal bulls issued by Pope Alexander VI in 1493. These declarations had granted Spain an exclusive claim to …

Aug 11, 2021 · The Treaty of Tordesillas was an agreement in 1494 between Spain and Portugal to divide the world between them using an imaginary line down the centre of the Atlantic Ocean. Why was the Treaty of Tordesillas necessary?

May 4, 2019 · In response to Portugal’s discovery of the Spice Islands in 1512, the Spanish put forward the idea, in 1518, that Pope Alexander VI had divided the world into two halves. Further European states now claimed that the Pope had not the right to convey sovereignty of regions as vast as the New World.

Oct 14, 2024 · The Treaty of Tordesillas, signed on June 7, 1494, was a landmark agreement between Spain (i.e. Crown of Castile) and Portugal aimed at resolving conflicts over newly discovered lands in the Age of Exploration.

Spain and Portugal divided the New World by drawing a north-to-south line of demarcation in the Atlantic Ocean, about 100 leagues (555 kilometers or 345 miles) west of the Cape Verde Islands, off the coast of northwestern Africa and then controlled by Portugal.

Jun 7, 2024 · Mediated by Pope Alexander VI, the treaty established an imaginary line of demarcation about 370 leagues west of the Cape Verde islands, dividing the non-European world into two zones of influence with the lands to the west going to Spain, and lands to the east belonging to Portugal.

Jun 6, 2024 · With a line on a map, the Treaty of Tordesillas split the world between Spain and Portugal. Was it a grand refutation of papal authority or an extension of it?

Jun 18, 2021 · Spain and Portugal Divide the New World. The year after Columbus discovered the Americas, Pope Alexander the VI issued a papal decree known as The Inter Caetera of 1493. The concept was to divide new land discoveries between Spain and Portugal in order to bring native peoples to the Catholic faith.

Acting as the great European arbiter of the day, the pope then issued a bull (decree) that divided the New World lands between Spain and Portugal by establishing a north-south line of demarcation 100 leagues* west of the Cape Verde Islands.