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politicians who could not win the support
of lesser men. His policies represented a
progressive program of public development
and financial discipline that most of his
contemporaries found inconvenient, as it
threatened their special interests. His self-
righteous and bullying approach deprived
him of necessary support. Although even
his enemies recognized his integrity, he
failed in most of his attempts to modernize
Spain, and it has been left to historians to
grant him the recognition that contempo-
raries denied him.
to find a way of managing the colony. Little
was done during the period of Spanish rule
of Portugal (1580-1640), but after regain-
ing independence Portugal was able to turn
its unprofitable possession into a source of
wealth during the late 1600s and early
1700s by the fortunate discoveries of gold
and diamond in the interior.
During the 18th century (sometimes
referred to as Brazil's “golden century”) a
central administration was established at
Rio de Janeiro, monopoly trading compa-
nies were created to manage the economy,
new settlers were sent from Portugal, and
the boundaries of Brazil were extended
westward and southward. Large numbers
of African slaves continued to be shipped
from A
NGOLA
during this period, the large
Amerindian population of the interior hav-
ing been found unsuitable or uncoopera-
tive for work on sugar plantations. By the
beginning of the 19th century Brazil con-
tained a large, complex population with a
growing sense of a separate identity. In
1808 the Portuguese royal family arrived at
Rio de Janeiro after fleeing the French
invaders of their homeland. The prince
regent, Dom João, (later King J
OHN
VI), was
delighted with his new residence and pro-
claimed Brazil an equal partner with Portu-
gal in a united kingdom. This situation
persisted even after the liberation of Portu-
gal at the end of the Napoleonic Wars
(1814). By 1821 political leaders in Portu-
gal demanded the monarch's return to L
IS
-
BON
. Recognizing the growing spirit of
independence in Brazil, the king appointed
his son Pedro as prince regent of Brazil with
the advice that he should join rather than
resist the movement when it became inevi-
table. In 1822 the prince took control of the
nationalist upsurge and proclaimed himself
Brazil (Brasil)
Portugal laid claim to this eastern part of
South America in 1500. The land may have
been sighted by Europeans several years
earlier. Agreements with Spain had assigned
new discoveries in Asia and Africa to Portu-
gal while reserving the rest of the world to
F
ERDINAND
V and I
SABELLA
I. A revised
dividing line proclaimed in 1497 created a
foothold for Portugal on the southern con-
tinent. The resulting linguistic and cultural
separation of what would become Brazil
from Spanish America has endured for
more than five centuries. Although the Por-
tuguese made periodic visits to the coast to
harvest brazilwood (after which the coun-
try was named), the red dye derived from
this tree did not seem to justify a perma-
nent settlement until the 1530s. Several
attempts were made to secure Brazil against
foreign encroachment, including her divi-
sion into proprietary domains whose grant-
ees assumed the costs of colonizing and
defending their respective territories. Some
of these “captaincies” evolved into the
provinces of the future, but many were
abandoned, and the royal government had
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