A Documentary History of Brazil

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11.0.11.

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A DOCUMENTARY HISTORY OF BRAZIL Edited by

E.

Bradford Burns

Covering the sweep of Brazilian his­ tory from the Treaty of Tordesilhas in 1494 to the Revolution of 1964, this collection presents outstanding politi­ cal, economic, and cultural documents that help to explain the broader cur­ rents of Brazilian development.

It

includes selections from novels and poetry, as well as state papers, autobi­ ographical sketches and travelogues. Professor Burns· perceptive introduc­ tion clari fies the major historical themes in Brazil's development-ex­ pansion and conquest, political evolu­ tion from colony to kingdom to empire to republic, and the fusion of Euro­ pean, African, and Indian races into a homogeneous society-and offers an exciting overview of Brazilian history.

,)

E. Bradford Burns, Assistant Pro­

fessor of History at the University of California at Los Angeles, received his B.A. from the State University of Iowa, his M.A. from Tulane, and his Ph.D. from Columbia. He has also studied at the Universities of Guate­ mala and Lisbon, and at the Central University of Venezuela. Professor Burns has been Spanish-Portuguese language consultant to the Council on Foreign Relations and guest lec­ turer at the University of Parana in Brazil. He is the author of The Un­

written Alliance: Baron Rio-Branco and Brazilian-American Relations, a study in the diplomatic history of the two countries.

PRINTED

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U.S.A.

A D O C UMENTARY H ISTORY O F B RA Z I L

Borzoi Books

oN

LATIN AMERICA

General Editor LEWIS

HANKE

COLUMBIA

UNIVERSITY

A Docum.entary History OF BRAZIL E D I T E D WI TH

A N

I N T R O D U C T I O N

BY

E. Bradford Burns

University of California at Los Angeles

N EW Y O R K :

Alfred A. Knopf

Marin County Free library Civic Center Administration Building San Rafael, California

L. C. catalog card number: 65-17482 THIS PUBLISHED

I S A BY

B O R Z OI

ALFRED

A.

BOOK, KNOPF, INC.

COPY RIGHT @ 1966 BY E. BRADFORD BURNS. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in a review to be printed in a magazine or newspaper. Manufactured in the United States of America and distributed by Random House, Inc. Published simultaneously in Toronto, Canada, by Random House of Canada Limited. FI R ST

E DITION

Dedicated with deepest gratitude to Charles Gibson William J. Griffith Frank Tannenbaum Lewis Hanke

*

A CK N OWL E D G M E NTS

My thanks are due foremost to Dr. Lewis Hanke whose good advice was indispensable and whose constant encourage­ ment was appreciated. I thank the following scholars for their suggestions and comments : in Brazil, David Carneiro, Francisco Iglesias, Caio Prado Junior, Jose Hon6rio Rodri­ gues, Luiz Viana Filho, and Helio Vianna; in Great Britain, C. R. Boxer; in the United States, Dauril Alden, Harry Bernstein, Troy S. Floyd, Richard Graham, John J. Johnson, Charles J. Kolinski, Joseph Love, Rollie E. Poppino, Engel Sluiter, Donald Warren Jr., John D. Wirth, and Donald E. Worcester. Nicholas Polites read the introductions to the documents and made valuable suggestions. Stanley L. Rose translated very ably the carta de doa�iio and floral of Duarte Coelho. I translated those other documents which appear in English for the first time. A grant from the Newberry Library and the assistance of its excellent staff, particularly Frederick Holden Hall, permitted me to complete a good portion of this book during the summer of 1 964. I was pleased to have had the opportunity to become well acquainted with the Greenlee Collection of Braziliana. It merits the attention of scholars and students of Luso-Brazilian studies. E.

Los Angeles November, 1 9 65

B R A D FO R D

BURNS

Contents

3

Introduction +

. I

C O L O NI A L P E R I O D

The Treaty of Tordesilhas + 1 5 The Letter of Pero Vaz de Caminha + 20 3· The Royal Letter Granting Powers in Brazil to Martim Afonso de Sousa t 29 4· The Founding of the First Settlements in Brazil t 3 1 5· The Royal Letters Granting Pernambuco t o Duarte Coelho t 33 1.

2.

LETTER O F

THE GRANT O F

PERNA�IBUCO CHARTER OF

6.

TO

THE C AP TAINCY O F

DUARTE

DUARTE CO ELHO

COELHO

34

45

Foreign Interlopers in Brazil + 5 0 THE

ENGLISH

TilE FRENCH

51 54

The Jesuits and the Indians t 56 8. The Rediscovery of the Amazon t 64 9· An Eyewitness Account of the First Battle of Gua­ rarapcs t 75 1 0. A Description of the Sugar Industry + 81 7·

x

+ Contents

11.

Vieira's Sermon Condemning Indian Slavery + 82

12.

The Discovery of Gold in Minas Gerais + 89

13.

An Example of a Colonial Land Grant + 92

14.

Accounts of the Tiete River: Highway to the Interior + 94

15.

A Bandeirante Epic: Over1and from Sao Paulo to Belem + 101

16.

Expansion to the South: New Roads and New Pas­ tures + 116

17.

The Treaty of Madrid + 121

18.

The Omnipresent Fear of Slave Rebellion + 127 SIXTEENTH-CENTURY SLAVE REVOLT WARNING OF A SLAVE REBELLION

127 128

PRECAUTIONS AGAINST NEGRO SLAVE REBELLIONS

129

19.

Pombal's Advice on How Best to Govern Brazil + 131

20.

The Secret Instructions of Viceroy Lavradio to His Successor + 137

21.

Observations on Life in Minas Gerais During the Gold Mining Era + 155

22.

Intellectual Achievements of Colonial Brazil + 164

164 THE POETRY OF GREGORIO DE MATTOS J OS E BASiLIO DA GAMA'S EPIC POEM 0 Uruguai 1 6 5 66 ROCHA PITTA's History of Portuguese America THE LITERARY SOCIETY OF RIO DE JANEIRO

2 3· 24.

1 170

The Sentence of Tiradentes + 178 The Economic Complaints of the Brazilians + 179 AZEREDO COUTINHO ON ECONOMIC REFORMS

1 79

COMPLAINTS OF THE MERCHANT CLASS OF BAHIA

1 83

25.

The Royal Order Opening the Ports + 186

26.

The Royal Order Revoking the Prohibition of Manu­ facturing + 188

27.

The Decree Elevating Brazil to a Kingdom t 189

28.

Instructions for the Guidance of the Prince Royal as Regent + 191

Contents :1:

XI

. II .

I MP E R I A L P E R I O D 29.

The Declaration of Brazilian Independence :1: 197

30.

Jose Bonifacio on Negro Slavery and Civilizing the Indians j: 200

31·

Statement of the Emperor on the Dissolution of the Constituent Assembly :1: 205

32·

The Constitution of 1824 :1: 211

33·

Portuguese Recognition of Brazilian Independ­ ence t 2I9

34·

The Abdication of Pedro I :1: 223 THE ABDICATION THE REACTION

35· 36.

223 224

Feij6 Outlines His Political Philosophy j: 2.28 Proclamation of the Majority of Pedro II :1: 2 30

37·

The Queir6z Law j: 231

38.

The Standard of Living of the Worker in the Northeast in the Mid-Nineteenth Century :1: 234

39·

The Problem of Large Landholdings in Pernambuco in the Mid-Nineteenth Century :1: 236

40.

The Treaty of the Triple Alliance :1: 2 39

41.

The Decree Opening the Amazon to International Traffic :1: 246

42.

The Republican Manifesto :1: 247

43·

Descriptions of Slave Markets t 251 CONDITIONS IN THE MARKET THE AUCTION

2 54

2 52

44·

The Law of the Free Womb :1: '257

45·

The Trial of the Bishop of Olinda :1: 263

46.

Mau:i Encourages Immigration and the Extension of Credit j: 266

47·

Witness to a Drought in the Northeast t 268

48.

The Social Classes in Rio de Janeiro during the Last Decade of the Empire :1: 274

49·

The Law Abolishing Slavery :1: 278

xii + Contents

. III .

R E P U B L I C A N PE R I O D 50.

The Proclamation Ending the Empire t 283

51.

The Abdication of Pedro II t 285

52.

The Decree Establishing the Republic :t 286

53·

The Decree Separating Church and State :t 288

54·

The Constitution of 1891 :t 290

55·

A Naval Proclamation Favoring the Monarchy t 301

56.

The Missions Award :t 304

57·

The Shift of Brazil's Diplomatic Axis: London to \Vashington :t 306

58.

The Intellectuals View the New Brazil :t 311 ' EUCLID ES D A CUNHA S

GRA