Papal Bull Inter Caetera
- When
- 1493
- Where
- Reference point for the demarcation line
- Episodes
- 1
Pope Alexander VI issued the papal bull Inter caetera on 4 May 1493, granting Spain sovereignty over lands west and south of a line 100 leagues from the Azores or Cape Verde. This decree followed Columbus's 1492 discoveries and preceded the Treaty of Tordesillas.
Episodes
Background and detail
Historical Context. Following Christopher Columbus's 1492 voyage, Pope Alexander VI sought to clarify territorial claims. The bull was part of a series of documents issued in 1493 to address the rights of the Spanish Crown in the New World, building on earlier papal grants to Portugal.
The Decree. The bull granted Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile all lands to the west and south of a pole-to-pole line 100 leagues west and south of the Azores or Cape Verde islands. It recognized Spain's claim to discovered lands not held by Christian princes while protecting Portugal's previous rights.
Consequences. Inter caetera defined a zone of Spanish rights exclusive of Portugal. An unanticipated effect was that nearly all the Pacific Ocean and the west coast of North America were assigned to Spain. This led to the 1494 Treaty of Tordesillas, which moved the demarcation line further west.
People involved
- Pope Alexander VI · Issuer of the papal bull
- Ferdinand II of Aragon · Recipient of territorial rights
- Isabella I of Castile · Recipient of territorial rights
Sources
- Inter caetera Wikipedia, revision of 2026-08-01
- Pope Alexander VI Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-01
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.