European colonialism in Latin American ended during the 19th century, with Spain surrendering its possessions while Brazil won independence from Portugal. BrazilÆs attempts at self-government began with a monarchy and finally evolved into a republic, echoing a process that had taken place over centuries in Britain. This paper will compare and contrast the republicanism of Brazil and Britain during the 19th century.
Portugal claimed Brazil early in the 1500s, at a time when approximately two million Indians lived in a vast area (Burns, 1980, p. 17). Portugal exploited BrazilÆs many resources, and soon the South American colony became PortugalÆs prize overseas possession. EuropeÆs Latin American empires began to crumble early in the 19th century, as Napoleon overran Spain and Portugal. The Portuguese king fled to Brazil in 1808, to rule in exile. Once the British stopped Napoleon in 1815, it became apparent that the Latin American colonies were no longer tenable (Burns, 1980, p. 144).
Three centuries of Portuguese rule left Brazilians with little example to follow once they gained independence in 1822. BrazilÆs size had prevented Portugal from exercising anything more than nominal control over many areas. In many respects, Brazilians had enjoyed a high level of autonomy. Indeed, Brazilian independence movements began only after Portugal tried to assert more control during the 18th century (Burns, 1980, p. 160).
The Portuguese king returned home after NapoleonÆs defeat, leaving his son, Pedro. By 1822, Brazil had declared independence and Pedro had declared himself emperor. The elites accepted the monarchy; after all, that is all they knew, and the monarchy offered the best hope of protecting their interests. Nonetheless, Pedro expressed his willingness to rule under a constitution. As a result, the Assembly convened on May 3, 1823 (Burns, 1980, p. 162).
Willing or not, Pedro and the Assembly clashed fr...