The Treaty of Tordesillas Line: How One Ruler Split the Globe

In 1493, Pope Alexander VI drew a line on a map that divided the world between Spain and Portugal. The Treaty of Tordesillas, signed a year later, moved that line 270 leagues west — a decision that would shape the fate of continents. This episode looks beyond the treaty's famous meridian to the men who made it: King John II of Portugal, who outmaneuvered Spain at the negotiating table; the papal bulls that preceded it; and the carefully guarded cartography of the era. We trace how the line was set, why it kept shifting (including the 1529 Treaty of Zaragoza that split the Pacific), and how it created overlapping claims that fueled centuries of conflict, from the Moluccas to Brazil. Lucas and Luna also touch on the practical absurdities — no one could actually measure longitude at the time — and the long shadow it cast on indigenous lands. A fast-moving half-hour on a single meridian that changed everything. #TreatyOfTordesillas #PopeAlexanderVI #KingJohnII #LineOfDemarcation #TreatyOfZaragoza #Moluccas #Brazil #PortugueseEmpire #SpanishEmpire #AgeOfDiscovery #PapalBulls #Longitude #Cartography #Colonialism #WorldHistory #HistoryPodcast #FexingoHistory #History Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo