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Question:After Columbus' voyages to the New World, there arose the question of "Who owns the New World?" Was it Spain or Portugal? (The Native Americans weren't given a "say" in the matter.) How did Spain and Portugal resolve this problem?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: After Columbus' voyages to the New World, there arose the question of "Who owns the New World?" Was it Spain or Portugal? (The Native Americans weren't given a "say" in the matter.) How did Spain and Portugal resolve this problem?

Since both Spain and Portugal had taken the lead in the Age of Exploration, in order to avoid any conflict between the two Catholic nations, the Pope divided all the lands in the world that were not already in the hands of "Christian" rulers, between Spain and Portugal. The Pope drew a line on a map of the world. The next year, 1494, the Treaty of Tordesillas was signed between the two nations recognizing the line west of the Azores. That is why Spain colonized all of South America, except Brazil, because Brazil was on the side reserved for Portugal.