The
History of Brazil
From the discovery to the present days
The
Sugar Age
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The colonial
economy of Brazil was marked by two major cycles, that of sugar
and that of gold. Both cycles reflected the significant role
of exports in the Brazilian economy. The sugar industry, confined
primarily to the north-east, was introduced into Brazil in the
16th century, and it was the principal basis for the wealth of
the colony for over 200 years. |
Sugar
produced considerably more income for the Portuguese crown during
the entire period that Portugal controlled Brazil, than did any
other export product, including gold. The Brazilian sugar industry
let to an upswing in economy, making Brazil the world's largest
producer of sugar for the ever-growing European market in the
17th century. The main structural changes had occurred by 1600,
though the strongest growth came thereafter. The more the sugar
industry prospered, the more it attracted Portuguese immigrants,
and the more it could afford African slave labor.
In the
beginning, "Indians" were often captured by the Portuguese
for slave work, but the men of these semi sedentary societies
were not accustomed to agricultural labor. Incapable of submitting
to the economic and social constraints of the plantation system,
many of them died and African slave trade was introduced in Brazil
in 1550 to substitute the "Indian" slave labor.
Foreign
Competition
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During
the 16th century, the colonization remained in the coast between
the present states of Rio Grande do Norte and São Paulo.
But the abundance of the "pau-brasil" and the development
of the cultivation of the sugar cane attracted the Europeans. |
The French,
who were always around since 1504, and had settled in Cabo Frio
about 50 years later, arrived in the present Guanabara Bay -
previously named Rio de Janeiro because the bay was mistaken
for the mouth of a large river when it was discovered on January
1502 ("rio" is de Portuguese word for river and "janeiro"
the word for january) - in November 1555, commanded by Nicolas
Durand de Villegaignon, settling on Sirijipe (Serigipe) island
which was later renamed Villegaignon Island, where Villegaignon
started to build a fort.
In 1556,
new French settled on the Paranapuan Island (present Governador
Island, where Rio de Janeiro's International Airport is located)
and others went to the coast. Soon, the French conquered the
affection of the "Tamoios" ("Indians" who
lived in the neighborhoods) who would become their great allies
in the battles with the Portuguese.
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In 1560,
Brazil's third governor general, Mem de Sá (1558-1572),
who succeeded Duarte da Costa in 1558 after his death in 1557,
initiated a battle with the French. In 1565, the Portuguese military
Estácio de Sá was sent to the Guanabara Bay with
the mission of expelling the French invaders. Accompanied by
his army, he anchored in the Guanabara Bay and realizing that
it would be impossible to fight with the French with few men,
he went to São Vicente in search of reinforcements. |
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"Tamoios"
and "mamelucos", name of those born of "Indians"
and Portuguese parents, accompanied Estácio de Sá,
encouraged by fathers Manuel da Nóbrega and José
de Anchieta who had offered themselves as hostages in an attempt
of making an alliance with the cannibal "Tamoios" who
lived in São Vicente. Returning to the Guanabara Bay,
they anchored near the Sugar Loaf Mountain, where Estácio
de Sá, founded the city of São Sebastião,
the present city of Rio de Janeiro, on March 1, 1565. |
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In 1567,
reinforcements under Mem de Sá arrived in São Sebastião
on January 20, date when the day of São Sebastião
(Saint Sebastian) is celebrated, and forced the French to surrender,
who left the Villegaignon Island. During this battle, Mem de
Sá, who had already suffered the loss of his son Dom Fernão
de Sá some years earlier, who died in a battle with "Indians",
also lost his nephew, Estácio de Sá, who died on
February, 20, one month after being wounded with a poisoned arrow
in the face, shot by the "Tamoios" who were allied
with the French. Today, January 20, date when Catholics celebrate
the day of Saint Sebastian, it is a holiday in Rio de Janeiro.
Some years after the French were expelled from Rio, they tried
to invade again, but this time, the state of Maranhão
(1594), from where they were definitely expelled in 1615. |
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After
the French were expelled from the Guanabara Bay, Mem de Sá
transferred the city of São Sebastião, which had
been founded near the Sugar Loaf mountain, to the São
Januário hill (later renamed Castelo hill). Mem de Sá,
the most successful governor general, died in Bahia in 1572.
After his death, Brazil was divided in two regions and governed
by two governor generals, Dom Luís de Brito, who was in
charge with the north, and Dom Antônio Salema, with the
south. |
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From
1580 to 1640 Portugal was united with Spain, and, being a part
of the Spanish colonial empire, Brazil was constantly attacked
by Spain's enemies. After King Filipe II of Spain (King Filipe
I of Portugal) ascended the Portuguese throne, the Portuguese,
who were dragged into Spain's wars with England and Holland,
began to see those two countries attack their holdings in Asia,
as well as in Brazil. By the time independence was regained,
Portugal's empire was greatly reduced, having lost its commercial
monopoly in the Far East to the Dutch, and in India to the English.
Only the resolute action of Portuguese settlers had saved Brazil
from the Dutch, who had attacked Bahia, and occupied Pernambuco.
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When
King Filipe III closed the Portuguese ports to the Dutch trade,
they decided to invade Brazil. They seized and briefly held Bahia
in 1624-25, under the command of admiral Jacob Willekens and
Piet Heyn. In 1630, they succeeded in conquering and holding
for a period of 24 years the cities of Recife and Olinda in Pernambuco,
which was then the major colonial sugar producing area. A fleet
sent out by the Dutch West India Company captured these two cities. |
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Better
armed than those in Recife, the Dutch attacked with 67 ships,
7.000 men and 1.170 cannons, everything under the command of
Hendryck Lonck and Diedrick van Waerdenburgh.
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In 1637
the company chose Count Johan Maurits von Nassau-Siegen, a prince
of the House of Orange and perhaps the ablest man in the Netherlands,
to be the governor general of its new possession. During his
government Pernambuco was prosperous. He conquered the affection
of the Brazilians by restoring Olinda, which was destroyed after
the invasion, and founding the village of Maurícia with
an urbanization never seen before. In Maurícia he constructed
his residence, the Vrijburg Palace (Palácio de Friburgo). |
Distinguished
scientists such as Georg Marcgraf and Willem Piso and artists,
like Albert Eckhout and Frans Post, were invited by Maurits to
make known to Europe the resources and beauties of Brazil. But
the directors of the Dutch West Indian Company, intent on a policy
of greed and gain, refused to support their enlightened governor.
In June
1641, Portugal agreed a period of truce with the Netherlands
which should last for 10 years, but while King Dom João
IV (twenty-first king of Portugal from 1640 to 1656) signed the
document, the Dutch governors ordered Maurits to seize the period
of truce to enlarge the Dutch conquests. The Dutch tried to invade
many Brazilian territories, not respecting the agreement. If
Maurits had disobeyed his governors and respected the truce,
it would have been easy to convince Portugal to allow them to
definitely establish legal Dutch settlements in Brazil. Maurits
resigned in 1644 and returned to the Netherlands.
After
Maurits left Brazil the situation was worse. Brazilians, Portuguese
and "Indians" suffered under his cruel successors and
soon, a series of revolts began to happen. On April 19, 1648,
about 4.500 Dutch soldiers left Recife, to attack Portuguese
and Brazilians in Arraial Novo de Bom Jesus, in Pernambuco.
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Led
by a wealthy plantation owner named João Fernandes Vieira;
André Vidal de Negreiros and an "Indian" baptized
Antônio Felipe Camarão after converting himself
to Christianity in 1614, 220.000 Portuguese and Brazilian soldiers,
who were aware of the attack, waited for the Dutch near the Guararapes
Mount. The Dutch merciless attacked, but although more numerous,
they were forced to retreat. About 1.000 Dutch soldiers died
in the battle, and their commandant Sigismund von Schkoppe was
seriously injured. |
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Ten months
later, on February 19, 1649, a new regiment of 3.510 Dutch soldiers
commanded by Johan van den Bricken, who would die in the second
battle, left Recife towards the Guararapes Mount and once again,
soldiers under the command of João Fernandes Vieira, Henrique
Dias, a Brazilian black born of African parents; Vidal de Negreiros,
Francisco de Figueroa and Diogo Pinheiro Camarão, Felipe
Camarão's nephew; defeated and expelled the Dutch. These
two battles were decisive in weakening the Dutch presence in
Brazil. |
The battles
became known as "Batalhas dos Guararapes" (Battles
of the Guararapes). In 1653 a fleet sent out by King Dom João
IV finally expelled the Dutch from the Brazilian territory, although
they resisted until January 1654.
The Dutch
formally recognized the Portuguese sovereignty over Recife in
1661 by a treaty known as the Peace of the Hague.
The "Bandeiras" and the Territorial Expansion
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In the
beginning of the 17th century, with the purpose of hunting down
and capturing the "Indians" for slave work and exploring
the territories they occupied in search of gold, some expeditions
called "bandeiras" led by a group of people called
"bandeirantes" were organized by the "paulistas",
as the settlers of São Paulo were called. During this
march into the interior they conquered new territories and founded
many villages, but they were also responsible for the extermination
of thousands of "Indians". |
At the
end of the 17th century, Portugal began to worry with the scarcity
of precious stones and hoped to find them in the Portuguese America.
The Crown started to offer recompenses to those who found the
deposits. The ablest men were definitely the "bandeirantes".
Gold,
which was sought by colonists in Brazil from the period of first
settlements, was not found until 1695 in a large district inland
from Rio de Janeiro that became known as Minas Gerais, where
diamonds were also found in 1729, attracting many plantation
owners from the north-east who brought their slaves. But the
major gold deposits, the wealthiest that had been discovered
to that date, were found only at the end of the century.
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The responsible
for the discovery of the first gold mines was Fernão Dias
Pais. In 1671, he was invited to lead a large "bandeira"
in search of silver and emeralds. He was then at the age of 63
and had a great experience in the "bandeiras". This
"bandeira" was probably the cheapest one to Portugal.
Fernão Dias, motivated by the idea of becoming the first
man to find precious stones, thus granting recompenses for his
heirs, offered to share with the Crown the expenses in this "bandeira".
But later, he suffered with the scarcity of financial resources
and men. |
To guarantee
that his men would not leave the "bandeira", he started
to impose a rigid discipline and soon, many of them revolted,
including one of his sons, José Pais, who, together with
other "bandeirantes" conspired against his own father.
It is said that an old "Indian" lady heard them planning
Fernão's murder and informed the chief. Fernão
arrested the conspirators and hanged his own son as example,
but it was not enough to avoid the desertions. Although with
few men, Fernão Dias did not surrender and continued his
march for emeralds accompanied by his other son Garcia and his
son-in-law Borba Gato.
Ten years
after this "bandeira" had started they found some green
stones near the Vupabuçu Lagoon, but very ill Fernão
could not return alive to São Paulo and died between March
27 and June 26, 1681. The "Caçador de Esmeraldas"
(Emerald Hunter) as a poem by the renowned Brazilian writer Olavo
Bilac (1865-1918) would later nickname him, died under the illusion
that he had finally found the so-wished emeralds, which were
nothing but "turmalinas", green stones like emeralds
but without the same value. But, although his aim was not search
the territory for gold, the discovery of the first gold deposits
were possible due to the work he had begun.
After
Fernão's death, Antônio Rodrigues Arzão and
Bartolomeu Bueno de Siqueira completed his route. Arzão,
who had started in 1693, found the first signs of gold in the
"sertão" (hinterlands) of Rio da Casca, and
Siqueira, starting in 1694, found gold in the highlands of Itaberaba.
The search for gold led to the discovery of diamonds in the early
18th century, in the states of Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso and
Goiás.
The impact
of the gold mines upon the Brazilian economy was largely responsible
for the transfer of the capital of the colony from Salvador to
Rio de Janeiro in 1763.
Perhaps
the most impressive development of the colonial period was the
vast expansion of Brazil beyond the line of Tordesillas (a vertical
line drawn 370 leagues west of the Cape Verde Islands). Before
gold deposits were found in 1695, a group of Portuguese went
towards the south and settled in the right bank of the "Río
de la Plata", which, for connecting the Atlantic Ocean to
the interior of the continent, became a natural way to access
the silver mines in the region of the Andes. There, they founded
in 1680, the colony of Sacramento, which became the reason for
long disputes between Portuguese and Spanish, who had already
settled in Buenos Aires for about one century.
The disputes
in the south ended only at the end of the 18th century, after
a series of treaties which fixed the limits of the Portuguese
and the Spanish possessions: Utrecht, signed in 1715; Madrid,
in 1750; El Pardo in 1761; S. Ildefonso, in 1777 and Badajóz,
in 1801. The area which Brazil occupied was then tripled in relation
to the area which was established in the Treaty of Tordesillas
(June 7,1494). |
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This
page was created on: January 24, 2002.
Last updated on: March 5, 2003.
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