Hey, everyone. Welcome to the show. Great to
be diving in again. Can you imagine a family
argument escalating so dramatically that it literally
redrew the borders of the entire world? It sounds
incredible, doesn't it? But that's essentially
the core of the story we're looking at today.
It really is. This isn't just, you know, dusty
old history. No, not at all. It's a really gripping
narrative. You've got political maneuvering,
these ambitious. frankly, dangerous voyages.
And consequences that just ripple outwards, things
nobody expected. Exactly. Unintended global consequences
that you could argue we still feel today. It's
like a real life geopolitical thriller almost.
Yeah, definitely elements of that political intrigue,
exploration. It's all in there. Instead of just
one kingdom, the prize was, well, potentially
the whole planet. Okay, so if you're finding
these deep dives into the past as fascinating
as we do, please take a second to hit that like
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the show and you won't miss what we uncover next.
So today we're plunging into Stephen R. Bound's
1494, how a family feud in medieval Spain divided
the world in half. Great book. Really lays out
the complexities. It really does. We'll put a
link to it on Amazon in the description below
if you want to grab a copy. Highly recommend
it. This book really takes you behind the scenes,
doesn't it? It shows how this seemingly localized
power struggle in Spain. Right. A fight over
the crown. And the excitement over these newly
discovered lands, how that all led to this absolutely
pivotal treaty, a treaty that shaped centuries
of global history. And Bowen highlights some.
surprising connections things you wouldn't necessarily
link together definitely so let's set the scene
to understand this huge drama what was the iberian
peninsula actually like in the late 15th century
it feels like a real pressure cooker it really
was okay so for you to picture it you've got
these two rising christian powers dominating
the peninsula spain which was itself just starting
to come together from Castile and Aragon and
its neighbor Portugal. And Spain wasn't exactly
a unified happy family yet, was it? Far from
it. Internally, Spain, especially Castile, was
pretty unstable. Isabella's claim to the throne
of Castile was seriously contested. Because of
Enrique V's daughter, Juana. Exactly. Juana,
often called La Beltranea. Many people whispered
or outright believed that her father wasn't the
king. This created these deep political fault
lines. And Isabella marrying Ferdinand of Aragon,
that added another layer. Oh, absolutely. It
definitely strengthened her position militarily
and politically. But, you know, it also worried
a lot of Castilians. They feared being overshadowed
by Aragon, losing their influence. It was a really
delicate balancing act. So it's not just about
who wears the crown. It's about the whole future
direction of these emerging nations. Precisely.
And then you have the social and religious context
layered on top of all that political entry. Right.
What was that like? Well, it's hard for us now,
I think, to fully grasp how central religion
was. You had this uneasy coexistence between
Christians, Muslims and Jews, but it was becoming
increasingly fragile. This is around the time
of the Reconquista finishing. Yes, exactly. And
you see the rise of the Kiversos Jewish people
who converted to Christianity, often under duress,
which added another layer of social tension and
suspicion. And the Inquisition is looming. The
Inquisition is looming, exactly. It signals this
hardening of religious attitudes, a much less
tolerant atmosphere developing. Life was mostly
agrarian infrastructure, pretty basic. You could
still feel the echoes of centuries of conflict.
So while Castile is wrestling with all these
internal issues, Portugal's looking outwards.
That's the key difference at this point. Portugal
had this clear vision, this focus on maritime
expansion. A lot of that is credited to Prince
Henry. The navigator. The navigator, yeah. Although
how much actual navigating he did is, well, debated.
But the drive was there. And what was the goal?
Just discovery? Oh, no, it was much more strategic
than that. For you to understand their focus,
they were after the source of African gold, for
one. Maybe finding the mythical Christian kingdom
of Prester John somewhere out there. Right, the
potential ally against Islam. And crucially,
establishing a direct sea route to India. That
was the big one. To bypass the existing trade
routes. Exactly. Bypass the Venetian and Arab
middlemen who controlled the incredibly lucrative
spice trade and other valuable goods coming into
Europe. By the time Columbus shows up pitching
his idea, Portugal was already well down this
path. Dias had already rounded the Cape of Good
Hope. Bartolomeo Dias, yes. He had rounded the
Cape. And the king, Joan II, was a very shrewd,
very focused leader. He was laser focused on
making that eastern sea route a reality for Portugal.
He'd consolidated royal power and knew exactly
what geographical discoveries could mean for
Portugal's wealth and influence. So Portugal's
charting Africa, getting closer to India, while
Castile is mostly looking inwards. Pretty much,
yeah. For you to appreciate the difference, Castile
had been caught up in those internal dynastic
fights, even civil war, for a big chunk of the
late 15th century. So no resources or attention
for exploring westwards. Not really significant
ones, no. They had claims on the Cary Islands,
sure, and some vague claims on the African coast,
but their main energy was internal consolidation.
But once Ferdinand and Isabella get a firm grip...
Then things change. Then they start looking outwards,
looking west. They wanted to catch up with Portugal,
maybe even challenge their growing maritime power.
You can almost feel the FOMO, the fear of missing
out. Right. And this is where Christopher Columbus
walks onto the stage, this determined Genoese
sailor. How does his big idea get mixed up in
this whole Spain -Portugal rivalry? Well, Columbus.
He was clearly a man of immense self -belief.
Some might say more persuasive than scientifically
rigorous, but definitely persistent. He'd been
shopping the idea around. For years. He went
to King Joan II of Portugal first. Makes sense.
They were the leaders in exploration. But Portugal
turned him down. Why? Okay, so for you to see
why, think about it from Joan's perspective.
He already had his own exploration project, the
route around Africa, which looked much more promising,
much more viable. And it was already underway.
Well underway, exactly. And importantly, backed
by papal bulls. These decrees from the pope gave
Portugal a kind of monopoly on new trade routes
and lands discovered southwards in Africa towards
the Indies. So why fund this risky westward voyage
Columbus was proposing? Precisely. Why risk resources
on a long shot that might even fall outside his
existing papal authority? Plus, Columbus wasn't
just asking for funding. What did he want? He
wanted a significant cut of the profits, hereditary
titles, governorship of any lands discovered.
These were pretty big demands. And John II was
trying to centralize royal power, not hand out
massive privileges. So Portugal said no. Okay,
Portugal passes. What makes Isabella and Ferdinand
of Spain decide to, you know, roll the dice on
him? Several things kind of came together for
Columbus in Spain. First, that intense rivalry
with Portugal we talked about. Columbus offered
a potential backdoor to the riches of the East.
A way for Spain to maybe leapfrog Portugal. A
gamble, but potentially a huge payoff. A huge
payoff, exactly. Second, Columbus was apparently
a very skilled salesman. He knew his audience.
He really emphasized the religious angle, the
chance to spread Christianity to new lands, convert
new peoples. This resonated deeply with Isabella,
who was known for her strong religious convictions,
especially coming right after the Reconquista,
the reclaiming of Granada. And the expulsion
of the Jews. Right. That religious fervor was
high. And then, of course, there was the lure
of gold. Plain and simple. New territories. New
wealth. That appealed directly to Ferdinand and
Isabella's ambition. And they needed ways to
reward people who'd helped them. Definitely.
They had all these hidalgos, the lower nobility,
who'd fought for them and now needed new opportunities
for wealth and status. Exploration offered that.
They were also frustrated, remember, by Portugal's
papal monopoly blocking them from the southern
routes. So despite maybe some doubts from their
own experts. Oh, yes. Their own advisors had
reservations, too. But the potential rewards
Columbus was dangling just seemed too good to
pass up. The potential upside outweighed the
risks in their calculation. And then 1492, Columbus
sails the ocean blue, lands in the Americas,
thinking he's near Asia. What was King Juan II's
reaction in Portugal when the news got back?
Incandescent with rage is probably putting it
mildly. Really? That's strong. Absolutely. For
you to grasp his perspective, João firmly believed
that existing papal decrees, especially the Treaty
of Alcaçovas from 1479, which had settled an
earlier war with Castile. Right. That treaty
gave Portugal rights south of the Canaries. Exactly.
South of the Canaries and along the African coast.
So in João's view, these lands Columbus found
to the west directly violated Portugal's established
monopoly granted by the pope. So he saw it as
pain trespassing on his turf? Pretty much. And
he wasn't just going to complain. He immediately
started preparing a Portuguese fleet to sail
west and claim these new Indies for Portugal
himself. Wow. So a real threat of war. A very
imminent threat of war between Spain and Portugal.
A major diplomatic crisis blowing up. Okay, so
war is brewing. How did they try to defuse this?
This is where the Pope gets pulled in, right?
Precisely. Ferdinand and Isabella, they really
wanted to avoid a war. They'd just finished consolidating
their power. A war with Portugal would be costly
and risky. So they appealed to the highest authority
they could deserve, the Pope in Rome. And the
Pope at the time was Alexander VI. Alexander
VI, yes. Rodrigo Borgia. A fascinating and controversial
figure in his own right. His rise to the papacy
was, let's say, politically charged. And he had
connections to Spain. Oh, yes. Strong connections.
He was Spanish himself, a Borgia from Valencia.
And he had a long history with Ferdinand and
Isabella. He'd even helped facilitate their marriage
years before. So Spain had an in with the pope?
You could say that. So in 1493, Pope Alexander
VI issues a series of papal bulls' official decrees.
The most important one for this story is called
Intercedera. Intercedera. Okay, what did it do?
Essentially, for you to understand the impact,
it declared that by the authority God had supposedly
given him, Ferdinand and Isabella and their heirs
had exclusive rights. Rights to explore, trade
with, and colonize the lands Columbus had just
found and any others they might find in that
direction. Exclusive rights. So locking Portugal
out. Pretty much. And crucially, the Pope drew
a line. An imaginary line running north to south
down the Atlantic Ocean. Spain got everything
to the west of that line. The East was implicitly
left for Portugal and their existing sphere.
An imaginary line dividing the world. Just like
that. Just like that. The official justification,
of course, was about preventing war between good
Christian kingdoms and rewarding Spain for their
crusading efforts and potential missionary work.
Preventing war, spreading the faith. Sounds noble.
But how did King John II in Portugal react to
this rather convenient papal line? Predictably,
he was furious. He absolutely refused to accept
this initial line. Why? What was his argument?
Well, for you to appreciate his stance, Portuguese
ships were already sailing far out into the Atlantic.
He argued the Pope's line was drawn too far east.
It severely hampered Portugal's existing sailing
routes down the African coast and potentially
limited their future ambitions in the Atlantic.
He basically said, this isn't fair. It boxes
us in. So he pushed back. He pushed back hard.
He demanded the line be moved further west. This
led to direct, very intense negotiations between
Spanish and Portuguese diplomats. High stakes
stuff. And this leads to the Treaty of Tordesillas.
Exactly. All this negotiation under the threat
of conflict culminates in the signing of the
Treaty of Tordesillas in June 1494. Think of
it as a global territorial negotiation under
extreme pressure. The Treaty of Tordesillas,
that name really does echo, doesn't it? What
were the key changes? What's most important for
us to understand about its terms? The absolute
crucial point for you to grasp is that the treaty
moved the Pope's original line. It shifted it
significantly westward. 370 leagues west of the
Cape Verde Islands. 370 leagues. How far is that,
roughly? It's debated exactly how long a league
was then, but roughly 1 ,200 miles or so. A substantial
shift westwards. And that was a win for Portugal.
A major diplomatic victory for Joan II. It gave
his ships much more room to maneuver in the South
Atlantic on their way around Africa, but it also
had this completely unforeseen consequence. That
westward shift. inadvertently place the eastern
bulge of south america what would later become
brazil squarely on the portuguese side of the
line whoa so portugal got brazil because they
pushed the line west essentially yes now some
historians debate whether juan ii maybe already
had some secret reports some inkling that there
was land out there interesting but the official
european discovery of brazil by cabral Doesn't
happen until 1500, six years after the treaty.
Regardless of whether João knew or not, the treaty
effectively gave Portugal dibs on Brazil. So
Tordesillas carves up the known and unknown non
-European world into two zones. Spain gets the
West, Portugal gets the East, including Africa,
the route to India, and, accidentally or not,
Brazil. That's the essence of it, a bilateral
agreement dividing the globe. So this treaty,
it did manage to head off immediate war. Well,
the time being, yes, it preserved peace between
Spain and Portugal. But what were the consequences
for Spain and Portugal? What did this division
mean in the short and medium term? Well, for
both of them, the immediate consequence was,
frankly, a massive boost. It propelled them into
becoming the world's first truly global superpowers.
Because of the monopolies. Exactly. The monopolies
granted by the treaty, which were later reinforced
by other papal bulls, gave them exclusive access,
at least in theory, to vast new resources and
trade routes. So Portugal gets rich from? Portugal
absolutely flourished from controlling that eastern
sea route around Africa. Spices, silks, precious
stones from India and the Spice Islands. Incredible
wealth flowed into Lisbon. And Spain? Spain,
with its claim to the Americas, eventually hit
the jackpot too. After the brutal conquests of
the Aztec, Mayan, and Inca empires, a staggering
amount of gold and silver started pouring into
Spain from the mines of Mexico and Peru. By the
mid -16th century, these two Iberian nations
were the dominant global players, shaping world
trade and building vast overseas empires. You
really had to visualize them as the two giants
on the world stage. But surely, the rest of Europe,
England, France, the Dutch... They weren't just
going to sit back and politely watch Spain and
Portugal carve up the entire planet. Absolutely
not. No way. For you to see their perspective,
this treaty explicitly excluded them. All these
potential riches, these new lands, these trade
routes, they were locked out. That must have
created huge resentment. Deep resentment, yes.
And a growing determination to challenge this
Iberian duopoly. Now, initially it was tricky.
Because of the Pope's authority? Exactly. Especially
before the Protestant Reformation really took
hold in Northern Europe. Openly defying a papal
decree that divided the world was a serious risky
business. But that changed. It did change. As
the 16th century wore on, and especially as papal
authority weakened in some areas, these excluded
nations started looking for ways, anyway, to
get a piece of the action. They started trying
to circumvent the treaty's restrictions. Oh,
what did that look like? Well, it started with
things like piracy, smuggling. Basically, ignoring
the monopolies. And eventually, it escalated
into outright military conflict. Think of them
as determined gatecrashers at a very, very exclusive
party. And they're starting to push the doors
open. So this division, this line meant to bring
peace between Spain and Portugal, it actually
ends up becoming a major source of conflict for
everyone else. That's a key takeaway, I think.
It became a central grievance, a major catalyst
for centuries of competition and conflict on
a global scale. So how did these challenges actually
play out? You mentioned piracy. Right. You see
the rise of English privateers, state -sponsored
pirates, essentially, figures like John Hawkins
and later Sir Francis Drake. Drake, right. Famous
for raiding Spanish ships. Exactly. They aggressively
challenged Spanish power. Particularly in the
Caribbean, they engaged in illegal trading in
Spanish ports, raided settlements, attacked the
treasure fleets carrying gold and silver back
to Spain. And the Dutch, they challenged Portugal.
The Dutch became major challengers, particularly
to the Portuguese monopoly in the East Indies,
modern day Indonesia and surrounding areas. They
formed powerful trading companies like the Dutch
East India Company, the VOC. The VOC, yeah. Almost
like a state within a state. Pretty much. It
had its own armies, its own ships, and they fought
numerous wars with the Portuguese throughout
Southeast Asia, eventually displacing them from
many key trading posts in the spice trade. So
these weren't just minor skirmishes. These were
serious challenges. shaping global power. Absolutely.
These were major conflicts that fundamentally
altered global trade networks and shifted the
balance of power away from the initial Iberian
dominance. And it's against this backdrop of
conflict and challenge that new ideas start to
emerge, right? Ideas challenging the whole concept
of dividing the world up like this. Exactly.
The concept of the free sea really starts to
gain traction here. How did that come about?
Well, a really pivotal moment for you to understand
this shift happened in the early 1600s. The Dutch
captured a Portuguese merchant ship, the Santa
Catarina, in the Strait of Malacca. Okay. An
act of piracy from the Portuguese view. Definitely
piracy from the Portuguese perspective. But the
Dutch East India Company needed a legal justification
for seizing the ship and its valuable cargo.
So they hired a brilliant young Dutch lawyer.
Hugo Grotius. Hugo Grotius, yes. And in 1609,
Grotius published, initially, anonymously, this
groundbreaking work called Mer Liberum. Mer Liberum,
the Free Sea. The Free Sea. And for you to grasp
its significance, Grotius' arguments went way
beyond just defending this one specific ship
seizure. He launched a fundamental attack on
the entire legal basis of the Treaty of Tordesillas
and the papal bulls it rested on. How did he
argue that? He argued that the oceans, the high
seas, by their very nature, they're vast, they're
constantly moving, they're essential for communication
and trade between all peoples. They simply cannot
be owned or monopolized by any single nation
or pair of nations. So nobody can own the sea.
That was his core argument. He asserted that
the freedom of the seas was a fundamental principle
of natural law derived from God or reason and
therefore accessible to everyone, to all nations.
Wow. So Grotius is essentially dismantling the
whole legal and moral framework that Spain and
Portugal had built their empires on. He's laying
the groundwork for a totally different way of
thinking about international waters. Precisely.
Now, his immediate goal was obviously to serve
Dutch interests, justifying their breaking into
the Portuguese and Spanish monopolies. But...
He framed his arguments in these universal terms,
appealing to natural law and the common good
of humanity. Advocating for the right of all
nations to sail and trade freely. Exactly. He
directly attacked the idea of a closed sea, a
mariclausm, controlled by just one or two powers.
And for you to appreciate its lasting impact,
Mario Libero, even though it caused outrage in
Spain and Portugal, even got put on the Vatican's
list of forbidden books. Really? Oh, yes. Despite
all that, it became a foundational text for modern
international law, especially maritime law. It
profoundly shaped how we think about the oceans,
navigation rights, resource access, even today.
That's incredible. Truly remarkable how a treaty
hammered out in 1494, stemming from essentially
a family succession crisis. Right. And fears
of war between cousins. It could have such incredibly
far reaching consequences, spanning centuries,
leading to global conflict and even sparking
the development of entirely new legal principles
like the freedom of the seas. What do you see
as the ultimate legacy of Tordesillas for us
today? I think the Treaty of Tordesillas stands
as this powerful example of how agreements made
in one specific historical moment can ripple
outwards in ways the creators never imagined.
Born from that feud and papal politics, it became,
as we said, a major point of friction. Fueling
conflict for centuries. Fueling nearly two centuries
of conflict, piracy, smuggling, espionage, outright
war across the globe. It profoundly shaped how
European colonialism unfolded, how European powers
interacted with each other and with the rest
of the world. If you really think about it, a
seemingly simple line on a map had this immense,
complex, and lasting impact on global politics,
on trade, and as we saw with Grotius, on the
very foundations of international law. It's a
potent reminder, isn't it, that decisions made
long ago, often for reasons specific to that
time, can cast incredibly long shadows. Absolutely.
They continue to shape the geopolitical landscape,
the economic realities, even the legal frameworks
we live with today. Okay, so just to quickly
recap for everyone listening, we started with
this contested throne in Spain, tangled up with
Portugal's big maritime dreams. Then Columbus
arrives. finds land across the Atlantic, and
King João of Portugal is furious, threatening
war. Which leads to the Pope stepping in, drawing
that first line. A line Portugal rejects, leading
to negotiations and the crucial Treaty of Tordesillas
in 1494. Shifting the line west, giving Portugal
Brazil, and setting up Spain and Portugal as
the first global superpowers, thanks to their
monopolies. But those monopolies didn't sit well
with England, France, the Netherlands. Nope.
leading to centuries of challenge piracy, privateering,
trade wars. And ultimately new ideas challenging
the whole concept, like Hugo Grotius and Mare
Liberum, the freedom of the seas. It's an incredible
chain reaction, really. What started as a way
to prevent war between two neighbors ended up
reshaping the entire world and the rules governing
it. In ways no one in 1494 could possibly have
foreseen. Not even close. For you, it really
underscores how interconnected the world was
even back then and how actions in one corner
could have global repercussions. It really does
make you think, doesn't it? For you listening,
consider this. How do seemingly arbitrary decisions
like drawing lines on maps centuries ago continue
to echo in our present world order? Can you think
of other historical lines in the sand that have
had similarly profound, unexpected consequences?
That's a great question to ponder. Or maybe think
about it this way. Given our modern ideas about
international law, sovereignty, human rights,
how do we even begin to reconcile the justifications
used back in 1494 for dividing up the world between
just two European powers? Vital questions. Lots
to chew on there. Well, that brings us towards
the end of another really fascinating deep dive.
Thank you so much for joining us as we unpack
this pivotal world -altering treaty. Yeah, thanks
for tuning in. It's a story that really highlights
ambition, rivalry. Unintended consequences, all
writ large on a global scale. We hope you found
it insightful. We genuinely love to hear what
stood out most to you. What was your biggest
aha moment from our discussion today? Or maybe
what surprised you most about the Treaty of Tordesillas
and its impact? Let us know. Share your favorite
takeaway or surprising fact in the comments section
below. We do read them. And if you enjoyed this
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helps. Thanks again for tuning in. We look forward
to our next exploration into the depths of knowledge
with you all.