历史小径·世界史英语30篇（7）

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批次0020-046：《托尔德西里亚斯条约》与教皇对全球探索的划分

In 1494, Spain and Portugal signed the Treaty of Tordesillas to divide newly discovered lands outside Europe.
Pope Alexander VI drew a meridian 370 leagues west of Cape Verde, granting Portugal rights eastward and Spain westward.
This line ignored Indigenous sovereignty and enabled Portuguese expansion into Brazil and the Indian Ocean.
Spanish explorers claimed much of the Americas, while Portuguese navigators secured trade routes to Africa and Asia.
The treaty reflected medieval notions of papal authority over non-Christian territories and justified colonization.
It failed to prevent conflict, as England, France, and the Netherlands later rejected its legitimacy entirely.
Cartographers adjusted maps to suit national interests, revealing how lines on paper rarely matched colonial realities.
Missionary efforts followed these divisions, embedding Catholicism in Spanish and Portuguese colonies differently.
Despite its eventual irrelevance, the treaty set precedents for international claims based on discovery and papal sanction.
Its legacy endures in linguistic, religious, and legal boundaries across Latin America and Africa.