Portuguese Empire

The Empire of Brazil (1640-1822)

In 1661 the Portuguese gave Bombay to England as part of a dowry, and over the next hundred years the British became the dominant power in India, excluding other powers almost completely from trading there. Portugal was able to cling onto Goa and several minor bases through the remainder of the colonial period.

Related Topics:
1661 - Bombay - Dowry - Goa

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In 1755 Lisbon suffered a catastrophic earthquake, which together with a subsequent tsunami killed more than 100,000 people out of a population of 275,000. This sharply checked Portuguese colonial ambitions in the late 18th century.

Related Topics:
1755 - Earthquake - Tsunami - 18th century

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Although initially less important, Brazil would become the main centre for Portuguese colonial ambitions, from which Portugal gathered resources such as gold, precious stones, sugar cane, coffee and other cash crops. Voluntary immigration from Europe and the slave trade from Africa increasing its population immensely (today Brazil is the largest Portuguese-speaking country in the world).

Related Topics:
Precious stones - Sugar cane - Coffee - Cash crops - Immigration - Portuguese

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Unlike the Spanish, Portuguese did not divide its colonial territory in America. The captaincies there created were subdued to a centralized administration in Salvador which reported directly to the Crown in Lisbon.

Related Topics:
Spanish - Captaincies - Lisbon

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In 1789, there was the Inconfidência Mineira, a rebel movement that failed, and the leader of which, Tiradentes, was hanged.

Related Topics:
1789 - Inconfidência Mineira - Tiradentes

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In 1808, the French troops of Napoleon Bonaparte invaded Portugal, and Dom João, governor in place of his mother, Dona Maria I, ordered the transfer of the royal court to Brazil. Brazil was elevated to the condition of a Reino Unido de Portugal e Algarve (1815). There was also the election of Brazilian representatives to the Cortes Constitucionais Portuguesas (Portuguese Constitutional Courts).

Related Topics:
1808 - Napoleon Bonaparte - Dona Maria I - 1815

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The King of Portugal, fleeing before Napoleon's army, moved the seat of government to Brazil in 1808. Brazil thereupon became a kingdom under Dom João VI. Although the royal family returned to Portugal in 1821, the interlude led to a growing desire for independence amongst Brazilians, In 1822, the son of Dom João VI, then prince-regent Dom Pedro I, proclaimed the independence, September 7, 1822, and was crowned emperor.

Related Topics:
Napoleon - Dom João VI - Portugal - 1821 - 1822 - Dom Pedro I - September 7

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