Transfer of the Portuguese Court to Brazil
1. Introduction
In the previous chapter we looked at the main liberation movements influenced by French and English revolutionary ideals.
However, these egalitarian ideals were part of the projects of an educated elite who looked to the Old Continent as an example to follow.
But the king was still a revered figure among the humblest of the people.
For a large part of the population of the Portuguese colony, the monarchy was the best form of government. In this sense, the king’s power was little contested (except among a certain social group, the middle class and the elite).
The hierarchical social relations between the colony and the metropolis were gradually rejected, because it wasn’t overnight that the population began to demand their rights and cry out for equality.
In a monarchy, social positions were rigidly defined.
Everyone had to maintain their social position. Blood ties, combined with court customs, defined an elite identity.
On the other hand, the vast majority of the population consisted of rural and urban workers.
However, with the transfer of the court to Rio de Janeiro, a significant social, political and cultural transformation began in the colony.
Urban society diversified and grew.
From the moment Brazil became the seat of the Portuguese imperial government, with the transfer of the Court, social mobility in the Luso-Brazilian community established in Portuguese America increased relatively.
Transferência da corte portuguesa para o Brasil
2.2. The transfer of the royal family and the Portuguese court to colonial Brazil
The transfer of Dom João VI’s court and family to Brazil was one of the consequences of the Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815).
The war waged by Napoleon Bonaparte’s France against England led King Dom João to implement the plan to transfer the Lusitanian administrative apparatus to its most promising colony: Brazil.
The project to move the Court to Brazil took shape when Napoleon’s troops, coming from Spanish territory, advanced on the capital.
Although the embarkation was botched, the decision to cross the Atlantic was not taken out of panic. This possibility had been studied for a long time (DEL PRIORE, 2001, p. 185).
The plan to move to Brazil did not come out of the blue in 1808.
According to the historian Lílian Moritz Schwarcz (apud O’NEIL, 2007), when Spain invaded and annexed Portugal in 1580, the Prince of Portugal “was advised to set sail for Brazil” (2007, p. 35).
Likewise, Father Vieira had already considered Brazil as the ideal place to establish the headquarters of the “Fifth Empire”.
“Interpreting the Bible, Vieira argued that the divine plans had chosen Portugal to found the Fifth Empire, after Egypt, Assyria, Persia and Rome” (apud SOUZA, 2000, p. 14).
In the 18th century, this desire to build a great empire was revised. According to Iara Lis Carvalho Souza, a group of Portuguese literary figures (including Andrada e Silva, Manuel Arruda da Câmara Bittencourt de Sá and José Vieira Coutinho) proposed a restructuring of the Portuguese empire in line with Enlightenment ideals.
The aim was to turn Portugal into a great imperialist nation, with a more productive and politically effective economy.
We can therefore see that there were already promising plans for Brazil before 1808. It would indeed be an “emancipated colony linked to the metropolis” (SOUZA, 2000, p. 18).
Although this vision of the future didn’t materialise, the Portuguese were already imagining the “emancipation” of their tropical colony.
The strategy was to develop administrative reforms so that Portugal would continue to control Brazil.
It is therefore important to stress that from the beginning of the 19th century, alternatives were considered so that Brazil would not radically and definitively break its relationship of dependence with the metropolis.
These ideas circulated in Portugal when the Portuguese royal family left for Brazil. They were even put into practice by the minister and secretary of state, Rodrigo Coutinho.
From the end of the 18th century, Brazil’s status within the Portuguese Empire gradually changed.
The role and concept of a colony was rethought, the colonial status was revised and even a transformation of this transoceanic empire, centred on Portugal and extending from Asia to Portuguese America, not to mention its possessions in Africa, was planned.
From then on, the project of a “great and powerful empire” gained momentum and became an effective state policy with Dom Rodrigo de Souza Coutinho at the head of the Portuguese government.
Dom Rodrigo promoted a series of knowledge institutions capable of training literate people and profiting from their work: Casa Literária do Arco do Cego, in Lisbon; Seminário de Olinda; Academia de Guardas-Marinhas and Observatório Astronômico, in Rio de Janeiro; Escola Médico-Cirurgiã, in Bahia and Rio; Curso de Estudos Matemáticos, in Pernambuco; Curso de Economia Política and Imprensa Régia, in Rio de Janeiro.
In the spirit of the academy, these institutions promoted scientific progress without changing the power structure and social order (SOUZA, 2000, pp. 12-13).
In this sense, even before the arrival of the Court, liberal actions were underway to promote development in the colony.
The idea was that if the libertarian ideal proclaimed in the French Revolution could not be suppressed, it should at least be adapted to the interests and needs of the Portuguese colonists.
2.1 Departure for Brazil
The reaction of the people of Lisbon to the departure of the Portuguese royal entourage may have been mixed, but in reality it was the king who was leaving, and this caused a general uproar.
With no intention of returning (which would not happen until thirteen years later, in 1821), Dom João and his family left his Lusitanian subjects “orphaned”.
When they saw this unusual spectacle, some of them cried, feeling desolate, as if their own father had abandoned them.
Jurandir Malerba (2000, p. 206) analyses this sense of communion between the king and his subjects, saying: “The image of the king as father takes shape in the imaginary, in the social set of images created to represent monarchical sovereignty.
The king was even seen as a supreme, sacred being.
This image of the king was also shared in Brazil. “The idea – or feeling? – of paternity is as strong for the Luminenses as it is for the Lisboners, who deeply used orphanhood to define their condition as a result of the king’s departure” (MALERBA, 2000, p. 206).
The departure for America was confusing.
According to an account written by the Englishman Thomas O’Neil in 1810, many men, women and children tried in vain to board the ships because they were full.
On 27 November 1807, the entire royal family, D. João, Prince Regent, future D. João VI.
The Portuguese court moved to Brazil because of the threat of Napoleon’s invasion of Portugal.
His Royal Highness the Prince Regent and his children were on board the fleet, which carried a total of 16,000 to 18,000 Portuguese subjects: all the ships were overcrowded.
On the Príncipe Real there were no less than 412 people in addition to the crew (O’NEIL, 2007, p. 59).
O’Neil gives us a picture of the scale of the departure, which he describes as an ‘escape’, with the notable help of his compatriots, the English, enemies of France and Napoleon.
O’Neil describes the chaos that ensued in the port of Belém: “From one moment to the next, thousands of people streamed in with their luggage and crates, not to mention the state bureaucracy and the wealth that was travelling with the King.
The beaches and quays of the Tagus as far as Belém were littered with last-minute parcels and trunks (SCHWARCZ apud O’NEIL, 2007, p. 36).
In general, the departure of the Portuguese court to Brazil is seen in two ways.
As a flight, an act of cowardice on the part of the king, and as a wise decision because it prevented France from deposing the king and conquering the Portuguese colonies.
England feared that Brazil would fall into French hands. This would further reduce their trading opportunities.
The English were already suffering the consequences of the war against France, which had led to the closure of European ports to British ships (the closure of ports, orchestrated by Napoleon, was intended to weaken England economically).
In this sense, the British were interested in an alliance with Portugal and especially with Brazil, as this was the only way to maintain overseas trade with Portuguese America.
It was no wonder that the English were willing to accompany the Portuguese court to Brazil.
England had put its navy at the disposal of the Portuguese court in exchange for commercial advantages with Brazil.
Thomas O’Neil’s account shows the dozens of ships that made up the royal fleet. In addition to the 15 ships of the royal squadron, dozens of merchant ships (around 30) carried the royal family and thousands of subjects to the tropics.
2.2 The voyage
The journey wasn’t easy. Food and water were rationed. There were too many passengers and a lack of hygiene that even forced women to cut their hair because of lice.
There were no beds for everyone, no chairs and no plates. But despite the hardships, there was singing to the sound of guitars and card games.
The Royal Squadron faced two storms at sea, which separated the ships from the squadron.
The ship that carried Dom João, the Príncipe Real, docked in Salvador, but others went to Rio de Janeiro.
On 22 January 1808, after 54 days at sea, the Príncipe Real arrived in Brazil.
Thomas O’Neil (2007, p. 69) has published a letter describing the transport of the court across the Atlantic:
We had the good fortune to be in the company of His Royal Highness, who stopped here (São Salvador) for lack of provisions.
It’s not enough to describe the desperate situation of the poor women who overcrowded the ship: deprived of what they needed, I was amazed to see how they overcame the difficulties.
This morning the Duke of Caraval died, literally collapsing from grief. I understand he was one of Portugal’s leading nobles and a man of exemplary character.
I really think he starved on the voyage and I hope the Prince will disembark here to avoid scenes of misery.
After a month in Salvador, King João arrived in Rio de Janeiro.
The Sugar Loaf would welcome this crew and their commander (Sir Sidney Smith, known as the “Lion of the Sea”), who was used to so many wars and battles. On the other hand, the air of the tropics, enchanted by the climate, the trees, the fruits and the local people (SCHWARCZ, 2007, p. 43).
2.3 The arrival
Prince Regent João VI, his mother and Queen Maria and the royal family landed in Rio de Janeiro on 8 March 1808.
The arrival of the royal court caused a great mobilisation in the city. There was a real popular celebration.
The streets were carpeted with beach sand and aromatic herbs, Goa quilts fluttered on the balconies and bells rang. [As the court disembarked from the ships, they were greeted by a shower of flowers and fragrant plants.
In front of the Church of Rosário, priests in silk raincoats exhorted the newly arrived travellers, while the air was shaken by the sound of fanfares, rockets and artillery fire (DEL PRIORE, 2001, p. 187).
This symbolic public act marked the beginning of a new era for the capital of the Empire, but also for Brazil.
Even the calendar was changed: 13 May, the prince’s birthday, was celebrated with festivities.
In order to install the nobility, the houses and mansions of important people in the colony were cleared, an act known as ‘retirements’.
The best houses were chosen to house the royal entourage. The letters P and R (Prince Regent) were painted on the doors of the chosen houses.
Quinta da Boa Vista, in São Cristóvão, became the residence of the royal family. The Quinta was donated by the Portuguese merchant Elias Antônio Lopes.
This was the scene of the first moments of the royal family’s arrival in Rio de Janeiro. But the changes were just beginning.
2.4 Opening the ports
Even before Dom João arrived in Rio de Janeiro, he had decreed the opening of Brazil’s ports to the so-called “friendly nations”, especially England.
The royal charter documenting the opening was dated 28 January 1808 and was written by José da Silva Lisboa, a passionate reader of the liberal economist Adam Smith.
This document violated the colonial pact (the commercial monopoly that Portugal had on trade with Brazil).
According to Boris Fausto (2007, p. 122)
The opening of the ports was a historically predictable act, but at the same time driven by the circumstances of the moment.
Portugal was occupied by French troops and trade could not pass through.
It was better for the Portuguese Crown to legalise the extensive smuggling that took place between the colony and England and collect the taxes owed.
England was the main beneficiary. Rio de Janeiro became a port of entry for English manufactured goods.
As the country opened up, tariffs changed.
So-called wet goods (olive oil, wine and brandy) now cost twice as much to sell in Brazil.
Other goods, dry goods, would pay a 24 per cent ad valorem tax (on their value). In return, foreigners were allowed to take colonial products out of Brazil, with the exception of Brazilwood.
However, England began to pay differentiated rates, 16 per cent ad valorem on dry goods and 30 per cent less on wet goods.
These measures reduced smuggling and eventually filled the Brazilian market with English products.
The market was completely overflowing; so great and unexpected was the luxury of English manufactures in Rio immediately after the arrival of the Prince Regent that the rents of the houses in which they were stored skyrocketed.
Guanabara Bay was full of ships, and soon the customs house was overflowing with goods.
Piles of tools and nails, salted fish, mountains of cheese, hats, crates of glass, ceramics, ropes, barrels of beer, paints, gums, resins, tar, etc. were exposed not only to the sun and rain, but also to general plundering.
International trade intensified with the Treaty of 1810 between Portugal and England.
This treaty was “the price Portugal paid to England for the help it had received from England in Europe” (HOLANDA et al., 2003, p. 93).
It should be understood that the ‘help’ was the escort of the English navy that accompanied the court on the ocean crossing.
England was given a special concession and from then on paid only 15% ad valorem.
Previous trade agreements were abolished.
Even Portuguese goods were taxed at a higher rate, 16 per cent of the value of the goods. “This concession had several consequences: it prevented the development of industry in Brazil, since its products could not compete with English goods sold at very low prices” (HOLANDA et al., 2003, p. 96).
Some of the main articles of the 1810 treaty, called Alliance and Friendship and Commerce and Navigation, were as follows
The two kingdoms would support each other, with England immediately supporting the invasion of French Guiana, a consequence of the declaration of war launched by Dom João as soon as he arrived in Brazil.
- The British Crown ratified its full support for the Braganças.
- England would have its rights to the island of Madeira renewed and would be given a neutral port on the island of Santa Catarina.
- England would have the right to cut timber such as jacaranda and vinhático, to build ships and to maintain a permanent naval fleet on the Brazilian coast.
- English subjects living here would be guaranteed freedom of religion, with no Inquisition, and would be judged by conservative judges (appointed by England) ‘recognising the superiority of British jurisprudence’.
- The Portuguese government committed itself to the gradual abolition of slave labour. The slave trade was immediately restricted to the Portuguese colonies in Africa.
- England was given the right to re-export tropical goods.
In addition to the aforementioned tariff agreement (tariffs at 15% ad valorem), these were the points agreed between Portugal and England, which lasted for 14 years.
However, the Luso-Brazilian elite did not accept the terms of the treaty. Accusing the government of treason, they were really acting to defend their property, especially their slaves. And, of course, the Catholic Church also spoke out against the league.
One other point should be noted: King João’s military actions in the Americas.
In 1809 he invaded French Guiana in retaliation for Napoleon’s conquest of Portugal.
And in 1817 it invaded Montevideo in Uruguay. These military actions were part of the expansion of the Portuguese Empire, in this case against Spain, which was under the command of the French armies.
3. Brazil from colony to United Kingdom
With the presence of the Lusitanian Court, Portuguese America became the command centre of the empire and was renamed the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarve in 1815. Brazil then became the seat of monarchical power.
To adapt to the new times, the Portuguese administrative structure, which had been transferred to Brazil, began to function.
Rio de Janeiro was home to administrative bodies such as the Board of Trade, Agriculture, Industry and Navigation of Brazil; the Royal Gunpowder Factory; and the Anatomical, Surgical and Medical School.
The new capital of the empire doubled its population between 1808 and 1821.
Brazil went from 50,000 to 100,000 inhabitants. The majority were immigrants (Portuguese, Spanish, French and English) who formed a “middle class of professionals and artisans”.
During this period, particular attention was paid to education:
During his stay in Brazil, D. João encouraged the increase in the number of royal schools – today’s equivalent of high schools – and promoted primary education and arts and crafts courses.
The Prince Regent also created our first institution of higher learning, the School of Medicine and Surgery, founded in Bahia in 1808.
The Military and Naval Academies were founded in Rio, and the Artillery and Fortification Schools in Bahia and Maranhão.
Libraries and surveying centres became active, and the Imprensa Régia in the capital was responsible for printing the books, pamphlets and periodicals published there between 1808 and 1821.
Dom Rodrigo de Souza Coutinho, Count of Linhares, was an important leader in this process of scientific and educational development.
As Minister of Foreign Affairs and War, he was at the forefront of the creation of institutions for intellectual promotion.
In fact, he was the heir to the ideas of the Marquis of Pombal (1750-1777), an old ally of the mercantile bourgeoisie who had plans to transform Portugal into a powerful empire.
Although the Prince Regent made Brazil the seat of the kingdom and equipped it with institutions geared towards production, both economic and cultural, the intention was to keep Brazil dependent on the Portuguese.
However, these institutional reforms had the unintended effect of providing the economic, political and cultural basis for Brazil’s emancipation.
However, the establishment of empire in the tropics gave rise to a sense of “nationality” (nativism).
Another civilisation emerged from the meeting of the rural and the urban.
The exuberant nature served as a landscape for the mixing of peoples and cultures.
Rio de Janeiro, in turn, was the microcosm in which these transformations took place rapidly and intensely.
4. In this chapter you have learned that
- Plans to go to Brazil predated 1808. There were already plans to build a powerful Portuguese empire, with Brazil as its main colony.
- There is no consensus on the transfer of Dom João and the royal family, but some scholars consider it an act of cowardice, others a military strategy.
- The Court’s departure for Brazil was prompted by the invasion of Portugal by the army of Napoleon Bonaparte, who was fighting for political hegemony on the European continent.
- England accompanied the Court to Brazil because of its commercial interests with Portugal. The British were the main beneficiaries of the opening of Brazilian ports.
- With the presence of the administrative apparatus of the Kingdom of Portugal in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil ceased to be a colony and became the United Kingdom.
See the following periods in the history of colonial Brazil:
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- Brazilian Independence – Breakdown of colonial ties in Brazil
- Portuguese Empire in Brazil – Portuguese Royal Family in Brazil
- Transfer of the Portuguese court to Brazil
- Foundation of the city of São Paulo and the Bandeirantes
- The transition from colonial to imperial Brazil
- Colonial sugar mills in Brazil
- Monoculture, slave labour and latifundia in colonial Brazil
- The establishment of the General Government in Brazil and the founding of Salvador
- Portuguese maritime expansion and the conquest of Brazil
- Occupation of the African coast, the Atlantic islands and the voyage of Vasco da Gama
- Pedro Álvares Cabral’s expedition and the conquest of Brazil
- Pre-colonial Brazil – The forgotten years
- Foundation of the Portuguese colony in Brazil
- Periods in the history of colonial Brazil
- Periods in the History of Brazil
