Question

The papacy's potential to play a major role in the colonization of the new world was confirmed by

Answer 1

This was confirmed by the treaty of tortesillas. The treaty was signed in 1494. It had the goal of resolving conflicts between explorers, like Christopher Columbus, and other merchants, over the lands they discovered. The pope got to decide what country got what territory, which showed that the papacy was relevant in the colonization of the new world.