Download The Treaty of Tordesillas, 1494

NAME ______________________________________ DATE _______________ CLASS _________
Primary and Secondary Sources
Activity
netw rks
The Age of Exploration
The Treaty of Tordesillas, 1494
Background
Even before Christopher Columbus landed on islands west of Europe that were part of what
would be later known as the Americas, the two maritime powers of Spain and Portugal had
been contending about rights to newly found lands. In the Treaty of Alcáçovas (1479),
Spanish sovereigns promised to give up their claims to Portugal’s possessions “below the
Canaries toward Guinea” in Africa.
Columbus’s 1492 discovery, though, ignited new disagreements over what Europeans referred
to as the “non-Christian world.” Although European expansion was primarily an economic
endeavor, another important motive for exploration was the introduction of Christianity to
other parts of the world. Queen Isabella, a devout Catholic, sponsored Columbus’s first
voyage partially in hopes of converting native peoples.
When Portugal realized that this line kept it from any territory in the Americas, it demanded
a new line. The Treaty of Tordesillas, named for the town where the treaty was signed,
moved the line west to 370 leagues from the Cape Verde Islands. Portugal would be able to
claim Brazil, but Spain had secured legal rights—at least as perceived by the Catholic
Church—to nearly all of what would become North, South, and Central America.
Directions: Read the excerpt and answer the questions that follow.
. . . whereas a certain controversy exists between the said lords, their
constituents, as to what lands, of all those discovered in the Ocean Sea up to
the present day, the date of this treaty, pertain to each one of the said parts
respectively; therefore, for the sake of peace and concord . . . [they]
covenanted and agreed that a boundary or straight line be determined and
drawn north and south, from pole to pole, on the said Ocean Sea—from the
Arctic to the Antarctic pole. This boundary, or line shall be drawn straight . .
. at a distance of three hundred and seventy leagues west of the Cabo Verde
Islands. . . . And all lands, both islands and mainlands, found and discovered
already, or to be found and discovered hereafter by the said King of Portugal
and by his vessels on this side of the said line . . . shall belong to, and
remain in the possession of, and pertain forever to the said King of Portugal
continued on next page
Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
Portugal quickly claimed that it had a right to new lands south of the Canary Islands because
of the Treaty of Alcáçovas. Spanish leaders, therefore, moved quickly to ask Pope Alexander
VI, who was Spanish, to sanctify their claim to the Americas. The pope did so, issuing five
papal bulls (official documents), the first in May 1493, giving Spain exclusive rights to newly
discovered lands in the west, “providing however they at no time have been in the actual
temporal possession of any Christian owner.” A second bull then established a line dividing
the ocean into two parts: one 100 leagues to the west of the Cape Verde Islands to belong to
Spain, the other east of that line to belong to Portugal.
NAME ______________________________________ DATE _______________ CLASS _________
Primary and Secondary Sources
Activity Cont.
netw rks
The Age of Exploration
continued from previous page
and his successors. And all other lands—both islands and mainlands, found
or to be found hereafter . . . by the said King and Queen of Castilla, Aragon,
etc., and by their vessels, on the western side of the said bound . . . shall
belong to, and remain in the possession of, and pertain forever to the said
King and Queen of Castilla, Leon, etc., and to their successors.
~from The Treaty of Tordesillas, 1494
1.
Analyzing Primary Sources Look at a world map. Who do you think profited more
from the treaty? Why? Use quotations from the excerpt to support your answer.
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Identifying Central Issues Recall that at the time of signing the Treaty of Tordesillas
in 1494, Columbus had “discovered” the island of Hispaniola but not the huge
continents nearby. Explain why this might have influenced Portugal to agree to the
terms of the treaty.
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3.
Drawing Conclusions Why do you think people of the “non-Christian world” objected
to the Treaty of Tordesillas?
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4.
Making Inferences The treaty states that not only lands now known but even lands
“to be found hereafter” belong to one or the other ruler “forever.” Suppose a new
planet were discovered today. Do you think its lands would be divided in this way?
Explain why or why not.
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Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
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