treaty of Tordesillas - History Lab

Treaty of Tordesillas

ad_hlab_min — Thu, 01 Dec 2022 12:41:33 +0000

Treaty between the Catholic Monarchs and the King of Portugal signed by the ambassadors of both monarchs in Tordesillas on 7 June 1494, to settle the dispute between the two countries over the areas of expansion in the overseas lands by means of a new line of demarcation between the two crowns, to be drawn from pole to pole, 370 leagues west of Cape Verde.

Portuguese version preserved in the Archivo General de Indias (Seville).

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The first official document reporting Columbus’ return from his voyage to the Indies

ad_hlab_min — Thu, 01 Dec 2022 12:41:24 +0000

The missive, dated 3 May 1493, is probably the first official record of Columbus’ successful voyage to the Indies. It was sent by Juan II of Portugal to Ferdinand the Catholic to inform him of the admiral’s arrival in the port of Lisbon and the sending of the ambassador Rui de Sande to discuss the matter. The fortuitous event placed the Portuguese sovereign in a position of advantage over the discovery of Columbus and, in fact, compromised the foreign policy clauses of the 1479 Treaty of Alcaçovas between Spain and Portugal for the dispute and partition of the Atlantic Ocean and the African coast. The announced sending of the Portuguese ambassador is testimony to the diplomatic battle that was about to begin between the two crowns for control of Atlantic expansion and that would end with the Treaty of Tordesillas.

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Memoir attributed to Ferdinand Magellan

ad_hlab_min — Thu, 01 Dec 2022 12:41:24 +0000

In the file kept at the Archivo General de Indias is an undated document (p. 29) in which the Moluccas are justified as belonging to the Spanish Crown in accordance with the partition defined by the Treaty of Tordesillas. This memoir is attributed to Ferdinand Magellan, due to the different and specific geographic knowledge reported in it which allows us to state that the author was aware that he would be facing a vast ocean when he started sailing in the Pacific Ocean.

Transcription of the memoir and comments on the geographical information at: https://www.rutaelcano.com/matematicas-de-magallanes

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