Historedia
EuropeEvent

Treaty of Tordesillas

When
1494
Where
Tordesillas, Spain
Episodes
1

Signed on 7 June 1494 in Tordesillas, Spain, the treaty divided non-European lands between Portugal and Castile along a meridian 370 leagues west of Cape Verde. It modified earlier papal bulls and was ratified by both crowns and Pope Julius II.

Episodes

  1. 7 June 1494 · Tordesillas, SpainSigning

    The treaty was signed in Tordesillas, Spain, on 7 June 1494, establishing the division of newly discovered lands between Portugal and Castile.

Background and detail

Background. Following Columbus's voyages, Portugal claimed the islands under the 1479 Treaty of Alcáçovas and the 1481 papal bull Aeterni regis. Spain rejected these claims, asserting ownership of the discovered islands and warning Portugal against interference.

Terms. The treaty established a meridian 370 leagues west of the Cape Verde islands. Lands east of the line belonged to Portugal, while lands west belonged to Castile. This arrangement modified an earlier bull issued by Pope Alexander VI.

Ratification. After signing on 7 June 1494, the treaty was ratified by Spain on 2 July 1494 and by Portugal on 5 September 1494. Pope Julius II provided further ratification on 24 January 1506, solidifying the agreement.

People involved

Sources

  1. Treaty of Tordesillas Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-10

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.