Treaty of Alcaçovas
Encyclopedia
The Treaty of Alcáçovas (also known as Treaty or Peace of Alcáçovas-Toledo) put an end to the War of the Castilian Succession
in favor of Isabella I of Castile
, and confirmed Castilian control of the Canary Islands
and Portuguese control of the Madeira
(discovered in 1419), Azores
(discovered about 1427) and Cape Verde
islands (discovered about 1456), all in the Atlantic Ocean
( Macaronesia
). It was signed on 4 September 1479 between the Catholic Monarchs
of Castile
and Aragon
on one side and the King of Portugal
on the other side.
Portugal on one side championed the claim of the daughter of Enrique IV of Castile, Juana, to the crown of Castile, while the Kingdom of Aragon championed the rights of Isabel to that crown. King Afonso V of Portugal
was married to Juana, about whom rumors of illegitimacy were spread and who was popularly known as Juana "la Beltraneja", because her father was alleged to be Beltrán de La Cueva
.
When Isabella, who was married to Prince Ferdinand of Aragon and whose claim to the crown was also disputed, was crowned Queen of Castile, civil war broke out in 1474. Portugal was finally defeated in the Battles of Toro
in 1476 and Albuera in 1479.
The treaty also settled disputes between Castile and Portugal over the control of the Atlantic in which Castilian control of the Canary islands was recognized but which also confirmed Portuguese possession of the Azores
, Madeira
, the Cape Verde
islands and gave them rights to:
This treaty, ratified later by the Papal bull
Aeterni regis
in 1481, essentially gave the Portuguese free rein to continue their exploration along the Africa
n coast while guaranteeing Castilian sovereignty in the Canaries. It also prohibited Castilians from sailing to the Portuguese possessions without Portuguese licence. The Treaty of Alcáçovas established Castilian and Portuguese spheres of control in the Atlantic and settled, for a while, a period of open hostility, but it also laid the basis for future claims and conflict.
Portugal's rival Castile had been somewhat slower than its neighbour to begin exploring the Atlantic, and it was not until late in the fifteenth century that Castilian sailors began to compete with their Iberian
neighbours. The first contest was for control of the Canary Islands, which Castile won. It was not until the union of Aragon and Castile and the completion of the Reconquista
that the larger country became fully committed to looking for new trade routes and colonies overseas. In 1492, the joint rulers of the country decided to fund Christopher Columbus
' expedition that they hoped would bypass Portugal's lock on Africa and the Indian Ocean
, and instead, reach Asia
by travelling west over the Atlantic.
. It is one of the first international documents formally outlining the principle that European powers are empowered to divide the rest of the world into "spheres of influence" and colonise the territories located within such spheres, and that any indigenous peoples
living there need not be asked for their consent (or even be informed that their fate was being decided upon). This would remain a generally-accepted principle in the ideology and practice of European powers up to the 20th century decolonization
. The Treaty of Alcáçovas could be regarded as the ancestor of many later international treaties and instruments based on the same basic principle - for example the resolutions of the 1884 Conference of Berlin, four centuries later, which in much the same way divided Africa
into colonial spheres of influence.
War of the Castilian Succession
The War of the Castilian Succession was the military conflict contested from 1475 to 1479 for the succession of the Crown of Castile fought between the supporters of Juana la Beltraneja, daughter of the late monarch Henry IV of Castile, and those of Henry's half sister, Isabella, who was ultimately...
in favor of Isabella I of Castile
Isabella I of Castile
Isabella I was Queen of Castile and León. She and her husband Ferdinand II of Aragon brought stability to both kingdoms that became the basis for the unification of Spain. Later the two laid the foundations for the political unification of Spain under their grandson, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor...
, and confirmed Castilian control of the Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
and Portuguese control of the Madeira
Madeira
Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
(discovered in 1419), Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
(discovered about 1427) and Cape Verde
Cape Verde
The Republic of Cape Verde is an island country, spanning an archipelago of 10 islands located in the central Atlantic Ocean, 570 kilometres off the coast of Western Africa...
islands (discovered about 1456), all in the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
( Macaronesia
Macaronesia
Macaronesia is a modern collective name for several groups of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean near Europe and North Africa belonging to three countries: Portugal, Spain, and Cape Verde...
). It was signed on 4 September 1479 between the Catholic Monarchs
Catholic Monarchs
The Catholic Monarchs is the collective title used in history for Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon. They were both from the House of Trastámara and were second cousins, being both descended from John I of Castile; they were given a papal dispensation to deal with...
of Castile
Crown of Castile
The Crown of Castile was a medieval and modern state in the Iberian Peninsula that formed in 1230 as a result of the third and definitive union of the crowns and parliaments of the kingdoms of Castile and León upon the accession of the then King Ferdinand III of Castile to the vacant Leonese throne...
and Aragon
Kingdom of Aragon
The Kingdom of Aragon was a medieval and early modern kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula, corresponding to the modern-day autonomous community of Aragon, in Spain...
on one side and the King of Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
on the other side.
Succession
Afonso V of Portugal
Afonso V KG , called the African , was the twelfth King of Portugal and the Algarves. His sobriquet refers to his conquests in Northern Africa.-Early life:...
was married to Juana, about whom rumors of illegitimacy were spread and who was popularly known as Juana "la Beltraneja", because her father was alleged to be Beltrán de La Cueva
Beltrán de la Cueva
Beltrán de la Cueva y Alfonso de Mercado, 1st Duke of Alburquerque was a Spanish nobleman and presumed lover of Queen Joan of Portugal.-Early life:...
.
When Isabella, who was married to Prince Ferdinand of Aragon and whose claim to the crown was also disputed, was crowned Queen of Castile, civil war broke out in 1474. Portugal was finally defeated in the Battles of Toro
Battle of Toro
The Battle of Toro was a Royal battle from the War of the Castilian Succession, fought on 1 March 1476, near the city of Toro, between the Castilian troops of the Catholic Monarchs and the Portuguese-Castilian forces of Afonso V and Prince John....
in 1476 and Albuera in 1479.
Possessions
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
, Madeira
Madeira
Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
, the Cape Verde
Cape Verde
The Republic of Cape Verde is an island country, spanning an archipelago of 10 islands located in the central Atlantic Ocean, 570 kilometres off the coast of Western Africa...
islands and gave them rights to:
- "...lands discovered and to be discovered...and any other island which might be found and conquered from the Canary islands beyond toward GuineaGuinea (region)Guinea is a traditional name for the region of Africa that lies along the Gulf of Guinea. It stretches north through the forested tropical regions and ends at the Sahel.-History:...
."
This treaty, ratified later by the Papal bull
Papal bull
A Papal bull is a particular type of letters patent or charter issued by a Pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the bulla that was appended to the end in order to authenticate it....
Aeterni regis
Aeterni regis
The Papal Bull Aeterni regis was issued on 21 June 1481 by Pope Sixtus IV, simply confirmed the substance of the Treaty of Alcáçovas, thereby reiterating that treaty's confirmation of Castile in its possession of the Canary Islands and its granting of all further acquisitions made by Christian...
in 1481, essentially gave the Portuguese free rein to continue their exploration along the Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n coast while guaranteeing Castilian sovereignty in the Canaries. It also prohibited Castilians from sailing to the Portuguese possessions without Portuguese licence. The Treaty of Alcáçovas established Castilian and Portuguese spheres of control in the Atlantic and settled, for a while, a period of open hostility, but it also laid the basis for future claims and conflict.
Portugal's rival Castile had been somewhat slower than its neighbour to begin exploring the Atlantic, and it was not until late in the fifteenth century that Castilian sailors began to compete with their Iberian
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
neighbours. The first contest was for control of the Canary Islands, which Castile won. It was not until the union of Aragon and Castile and the completion of the Reconquista
Reconquista
The Reconquista was a period of almost 800 years in the Middle Ages during which several Christian kingdoms succeeded in retaking the Muslim-controlled areas of the Iberian Peninsula broadly known as Al-Andalus...
that the larger country became fully committed to looking for new trade routes and colonies overseas. In 1492, the joint rulers of the country decided to fund Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus was an explorer, colonizer, and navigator, born in the Republic of Genoa, in northwestern Italy. Under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, he completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean that led to general European awareness of the American continents in the...
' expedition that they hoped would bypass Portugal's lock on Africa and the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
, and instead, reach Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
by travelling west over the Atlantic.
Long term implications
The Treaty of Alcáçovas can be considered as a landmark in the history of colonialismColonialism
Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby the metropole claims sovereignty over the colony and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by...
. It is one of the first international documents formally outlining the principle that European powers are empowered to divide the rest of the world into "spheres of influence" and colonise the territories located within such spheres, and that any indigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples are ethnic groups that are defined as indigenous according to one of the various definitions of the term, there is no universally accepted definition but most of which carry connotations of being the "original inhabitants" of a territory....
living there need not be asked for their consent (or even be informed that their fate was being decided upon). This would remain a generally-accepted principle in the ideology and practice of European powers up to the 20th century decolonization
Decolonization
Decolonization refers to the undoing of colonialism, the unequal relation of polities whereby one people or nation establishes and maintains dependent Territory over another...
. The Treaty of Alcáçovas could be regarded as the ancestor of many later international treaties and instruments based on the same basic principle - for example the resolutions of the 1884 Conference of Berlin, four centuries later, which in much the same way divided Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
into colonial spheres of influence.
External links
- Full English translation Treaty Between Spain and Portugal, Concluded at Alcacovas, 4 September 1479.