UNCERTAINPOWER · Uncertain Power: Representing the king in the Portuguese empire (1640-1750)

Uncertain Power: Representing the king in the Portuguese empire (1640-1750)

UNCERTAINPOWER addressed the authority of the viceroys and governors-general, the highest representatives of the Portuguese kings, in the States of India and Brazil between 1640 and 1750, and as such, it deals with the relevance of different forms of expression of power and authority. The territories under analysis were places where the physical presence of the monarchs was impossible to happen. In dialogue with this historiography, the objectives of this project are: 1.To identify the activities and policies of the Portuguese governors-general and viceroys in the context of the Portuguese crown’s priorities and policy in the State of India and State of Brazil, in an intraimperial connected and comparative perspective. 2. To discuss the agency of local societies, local political cultures and “local” empires (like the Mughal, for example, in the case of State of India) in the shaping of symbolic forms of authority used by the Portuguese officers. 3. To consider the reception of these symbolic forms of authority by the very diverse societies these officers were engaged with. What was the level of efficiency of these representations of power in societies with such different cultural codes? 4. To identify the existence of a circulation of models between different empires, namely to compare the results of this project with the vice-regal experiences of the Hispanic Monarchy, in first place, but also in relation to the British, Dutch, Mughal and Ottoman empires, placing them in the context of the first globalization. My main conclusions are: 1. The appointed viceroys and governors-general were men of the close circle of the kings. This did not mean their authority was recognized as such during their offices. 2. The communication system was slow, granting the viceroy/governor-general a high degree of autonomy, especially in Goa. 3. The local elites – mainly in the State of India – were powerful enough to undermine the instructions brought by the viceroys. They had their networks and their own agenda, which often collided with the growing efforts of centralization. 4. The capacity Portuguese had to negotiate with its neighbors in the State of India was reduced. The reinos vizinhos (neighboring kingdoms) considered the Portuguese to be inferior, rather impolite and pauper and not always would receive them with the due honors. 5. There was a learning capacity in these offices. The few men who take office in both Brazil and India show how their experiences in one place affect their jobs in the other territory.

Текст от CORDIS, на английски · Данни: CORDIS, © Европейски съюз