Disembarkation of Cabral by Oscar Pereira da Silva, 1922
The
arrival of the Portuguese in the land that came to be called Brazil is directly
related to the European commercial expansion which began in the XVth c.
In the search for gold and for an alternative route to Asia circumnavigating Africa, the
Portuguese princes had a chance to prove their military skills, to the glory of
the Avis dynasty, and to rescue souls, to the glory of the Christian Church.
With the sponsorship of Genovese bankers, they went beyond, and shaped an Oversee Empire,
provider of colonial goods to the European market, in parts of Africa, Asia and
South America.
They
arrived in India in 1498, but they missed the privilege to be the first ones to
arrive where became known as America, done by Colombo sponsored by the Spanish kings. But for all the service already delivered,
they could negotiate with Spain and get a hold of possibilities in the newfound
land.
With the blessings of the Pope, the Treaty of Tordesilhas, from 1494,
established a meridian to divide the Earth in two exploiting domains - any land
“found or to be find” to the East of this meridian belonged to the Portuguese,
and to the West, to Spain.
In 1494, Portugal was granted only a part of Brazil
In
1500, a second Portuguese fleet was sent to India.
Under the command of Pedro Álvares Cabral, they deviated from the route along the African coast and arrived in the region today known as Porto Seguro in April.
Under the command of Pedro Álvares Cabral, they deviated from the route along the African coast and arrived in the region today known as Porto Seguro in April.
The route travelled by Cabral in 1500.
The
date of this first contact, as well as their first impressions upon arrival,
are registered in the letter which Pero Vaz de Caminha, the oficial notary,
wrote to the king D. Manuel I. This letter is considered by many today as the most accurate
descriptions of what Brazil used to look like in 1500. "Arvoredo Tanto, e tamanho, e tão basto, e
de tanta folhagem, que não se pode calcular", which roughly translates as "The vastness
of the treeline and foliage is incalculable". He also described the natives, for it was not a
vacant land.
To
the European public though, it was Americo Vespucci, who gave account of the
place for his writings were the first printed texts about Brazil – “Mundus
Novus" – published around 1503-1504. He says: “And if in this world
exists a terrestrial paradise, without doubt cannot be far from these places”.
The
ideia that Paradise could exist on Earth abounded in the imaginations of medieval Europeans.
But the taste for wonder and mystery, almost inseparable from voyage literature during the Age of Discoveries, occupies singularly, very little space in Portuguese writings about the New World. They had become more practical with the occupation of Africa, as they exorcised the ideias about monsters and demons inhabitting the unknown Seas. Even the fabulous India became a mere market to profit from in the name and glory of their souverain.
The ideia of an Eldorado persisted though as the fantastic element to guide them.
But the taste for wonder and mystery, almost inseparable from voyage literature during the Age of Discoveries, occupies singularly, very little space in Portuguese writings about the New World. They had become more practical with the occupation of Africa, as they exorcised the ideias about monsters and demons inhabitting the unknown Seas. Even the fabulous India became a mere market to profit from in the name and glory of their souverain.
The ideia of an Eldorado persisted though as the fantastic element to guide them.
In the search for riches and to map the
territory, Portugal sent the first expedition in 1501, with Gaspar Lemos in
command and other experienced navigators, and cartographers like Americo
Vespucci, who verified an abundance of trees called PAU-BRASIL (literally ember
stick). A similar species was formerly brought from Asia, cherished by medieval Europe for the red tint it produces. Thus, with the inexistence of gold at first glimpse, Brazilwood became the first lucrative colonial product. And is in the origin
of the name given to the country.
Established
as a crown-granted Portuguese monopoly, trading posts where created along the
coast where the natives could stack the logs in exchange for trinkets, like
mirrors and knives. Other nations tried to harvest and smuggle the logs to
Europe, and corsairs began the attacks on Portuguese ships.
Woodcut from Andre Thevet's Cosmographie universelle, 1555
In hundred years, these trees were almost extinct, as well as the native population.
In this first expedition, important sites where mapped, like Cabo de São Roque – 16/08/1501;
Rio São Francisco – 04/10/1501; Baía de Todos os Santos – 01/11/1501; Cabo de
São Tomé – 21/12/1501; Rio de Janeiro – 01/01/1502; Angra dos Reis – 06/01/1502.
Bibliography:
HISTÓRIA DO BRASIL: Boris Fausto
VISÕES DO PARAÍSO: Sérgio Buarque de Holanda
O POVO BRASILEIRO: Darcy Ribeiro
