AboutPaul Walcutt Expertise I am a lifelong student of history with a BA from Haverford College. My areas of concentration and expertise are Latin America and Europe, with a focus on the 20th century.
Question Why was an imaginary line drawn, which ran north and south, through South America? What was this line called? Thank you
Answer The Pope, hoping to avoid conflicts between Catholic Spain and Portugal, drew the line in the 15th century. All terrotories west of the line were deemed colonizedable by Spain, and all lands east, by Portugal. It was referred to as the line of demarcation, and was changed in 1494 by the Treaty of Torsedillas.
