Portuguese Discoveries (1490s)

In the 15th and 16th centuries Portugal, an Iberian Kingdom with barely a million inhabitants, was
hemmed in by the Atlantic in front and by a hostile Castile behind. After years of struggle against the
Moorish occupation, the Portuguese turned their attention and energy to the sea and what lay
beyond. While the Spaniards set out in search of a route to the Orient by voyaging to the West, the
Portuguese opted for the so-called "Southern Cycle" down the African coast. Reaching the Cape of
Good Hope in 1487, they were led by the navigator, Vasco da Gama, across the Indian Ocean to
discover the sea route to the Far East in 1497. They surmized the existence of lands across the
Atlantic, but they had kept whatever knowledge they had of "western" lands to themselves in order
to forestall the ambitions of Spain, England, and France. For a small nation, secrecy was the only
available method of safeguarding the rewards of bold and successful exploration against exploitation
by more powerful maritime rivals.

The Treaty of Tordesillas (1494) settled the question of possession of the new lands between Spain
and Portugal. It was agreed that territories lying east of a meridian 370 leagues west of the Cape
Verde Islands should belong to Portugal, the lands to the west to Spain. This imaginary line, from
pole to pole, cut through the eastern- most part of the South American continent and constituted
Brazil's first frontier, although the formal discovery by Pedro Alvares Cabral did not take place until
six years later in 1500. (He landed on April 22, 1500 in what is today Porto Seguro, Bahia.)
 

First Settlements (1530-1549)

Cabral's voyage was soon followed by other Portuguese expeditions. The most exploitable wealth
they found was a wood that produced red and purples dyes, pau-brasil (from which the country
derived its name). Organized occupation only began in 1530, when Portugal sent out the first
colonists with domestic animals, plants, and seeds to establish permanent settlements. The existing
small enclaves in the northeast were consolidated. São Vicente on the coast of the modern State of
São Paulo was founded in 1532, and the city of Salvador, later chosen as the seat of the Governors
General, followed in 1549. The land was sparsely inhabited by Indian tribes, some peaceful and
others, especially in the interior, fierce and warlike. As more of the land was settled, a system of
administration became necessary. As a first step, the Portuguese Crown created a number of
hereditary fiefs, or captaincies. Fourteen of these captainciessome larger than Portugal itselfwere
established in the mid 16th century, and the beneficiaries, called donatários, were responsible for
their defense and development. The captaincy system lasted long enough to influence the basic
territorial and political pattern of modern Brazil.

Colony (1580s - 1800)

The moist and fertile seaboard of what is now the State of Pernambuco was very suitable for
growing sugar and also conveniently located as a port of call for sailing ships traveling from Portugal
to West Africa and the Orient. The sugar plant and the tech nique of its cultivation had reached
Brazil from Madeira. A flourishing triangular trade soon developed, based on the importation of
slave labor from West Africa to work on sugar plantations. The sugar was exported to markets in
Europe where rising demand was beginning to outrun supplies from traditional sources.
 

The Union of Spain and Portugal (1580-1640)

This development was interrupted by events in Europe. When King Sebastian of Portugal died in
1578, Philip II of Spain succeeded in his claim to the vacant throne in Lisbon. From 1580 to 1640,
the two Peninsular kingdoms were linked together under the Spanish crown. Thus, by the union of
the two countries, South America became, for the time span, in its entirety a Hispanic world.
Paradoxically, Portugal's 60 years of union with Spain were to confer unexpected advantages on her
transatlantic colony. In the absence of boundaries, both the Portuguese and the Brazilians started
penetrating deeper into the vast hinterlands.

The main starting point for this exploration was the captaincy of São Vicente, and it was from their
base in São Paulo that the pioneers pushed the frontier forward from the seaboard into the interior.
Expeditions (known as Bandeiras )in search of Indian slaves cut their way through forest, climbed
the difficult escarpments, and marched across the inland plateau. The expedition (Bandeirantes) are
known to have brought back with them Indians captured from Jesuit missions scattered in the interior
of the country. Thus, without their realizing it, the Bandeirantes expanded the boundaries of the
future independent Brazil.
 

Territorial Expansion (1600's)

In 1640, when the Portuguese under John VI recovered their Independence, they refused to
abandon the lands they had occupied and colonized west of the original Tordesillas line. Claiming
what has since become recognized in international law as the right o f uti possidetisthe right
derived not only from title but also from "useful possession"the Portuguese succeeded in
establishing themselves as the rightful owners. The second half of the 17th century saw Portugal
freed from Spanish rule, the northeast of Brazil liberated from a 24-year occupation by Dutch
forces, (Battle of Guararapes) and the weakening of Brazil's sugar economy. The decline of sugar
production was followed by a movement outward from the sugar growing regions to unexplored
territories.
 

Gold Discovery (1690-1800)

The most important consequence of these expeditions was the discovery of gold. While the gold
rush which followed drained thousands of people away from the coastal plantations, it also attracted
fresh immigration from Portugal. Other consequences were the growth of cattle farming in the interior
to provide meat and leather for the mining centers and the emergence of new cities in what is now
the State of Minas Gerais. Altogether nearly 1,000 tons of gold and 3 million carats of diamonds
were taken from th e region between 1700 and l800. The growth of gold mining in Brazil was an
important development which influenced the course of events not only in the colony but also in
Europe. Although the gold was controlled by Portugal and shipped to Lisbon, it did not remain
there. Under the Methuen Treaty of 1703, England supplied textile products to Portugal. These
were paid for with gold from the Brazilian mines. The Brazilian gold which ended up in London
helped to finance the Industrial Revolution.

Coffee (1820s - 1900s)

But the boom in gold and diamond mining, like that of sugar, was destined to be followed by the rise
of an even more important source of wealthcoffee. Just as mining caused a migration of people
from Pernambuco and Bahia southwards to Minas Gerais, so the spread of coffee-growing
advanced the settlement of empty land still further to the south. Coffee first reached Brazil via French
Guiana in the 18th century. The ear]y plantations were in regions well provided with slave labor in
the hinterland of Rio de Janeiro; but the abolition of slavery and European immigration into the State
of São Paulo in the late 19th century caused coffee growing to move southwards to the region where
soil conditions, climate. and altitude combined to create an ideal environment, in turn, made Brazil
the biggest coffee producer in the world.

Another important event in the second half of the 18th century was the transfer of the seat of colonial
government. After more than 200 years in Salvador, the capital was moved to Rio de Janeiro, where
it dominated the main access route to Minas Gerais and was closer to the growing population
centers in the southern regions of the colony.

Republic (1880s - Now)

King Jonh's son, who was in charge of looking over the colony, declared its independence and became the Emperor of Brazil. He seved many years as Emperor, and then passed the crown to his son, Pedro II. Pedro II served as Emperor for many years, until the monarchy fell. Brazil was ruled for many years by Military Rulers. The last of the generals was, Gen. João Baptista Figueiredo, who served from 1979 to 1985. The military government fell, and in 1985, for the 1st time in years, a president was elected by the people, Pres. José Sarney. Following Pres. Sarney was, Fernando Collor (who was impeached with charges of corruption), Itamar Franco, and the current president, Pres. Fernando Henrique Cardoso. Pres. Cardoso was elected in 1994, and was re-elected in 1998.
 

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