Sublimus Dei

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Sublimus Dei (also seen as Sublimus Deus and Sublimis Deus) is a papal bull promulgated by Pope Paul III on May 29, 1537, which forbids the enslavement of the indigenous peoples of the Americas.

The pope uses in the bull almost the same language as in his letter, Veritas ipsa to Cardinal Juan de Tavera, Archbishop of Toledo, sent less than a month earlier on May 2, 1537. Paul III unequivocally declares the indigenous peoples of the Americas to be rational beings with souls, denouncing any idea to the contrary as directly inspired by the "enemy of the human race" (Satan). He goes on to condemn their reduction to slavery in the strongest terms, declaring it null and void for as well as for any people known or that could be discovered in the future, entitles their right to liberty and property, and concludes with a call for their evangelization.

The bull had a strong impact on the Valladolid debate, and its principles eventually became the official position of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain, although it was often ignored by the colonists and conquistadores themselves.