Latin+America

BRAZIL

The 18th Century Reforms


 * Spain: __amigos del pais__- group that met in many cities to discuss and plan all kinds of reforms...material benefits and changes, not political reforms
 * Portugal: foreign influences and ideas created a group of progressive thinkers and bureaucrats that were open to new ideas in economy, education, and philosophy.
 * the expansion of population and and economy in Europe, and the increased demands for american products, along with the long series of war in the 18th cent., gave the americas new importance

the shifting balance of politics and trade
 * spanish colonial system had become outmoded and it no longer securely held the Indies
 * foreign wars, increasing debt, declining population, and internal revolts --> spain was already weak...they were no match for powerful France, England, Holland, (Holland was protestant...rival of catholic spain)
 * English took Jamaica, French took western hispanola,
 * many islands turned to sugar plantations and slavery
 * failure of the spanish mercantile and political system...annual fleets became irregular
 * colonies became self-sufficient, central govt became weaker, local aristocrats increased their control over economy and govt of their regions at the expense of natives and lower-class populations.
 * charles II died without an heir...other European nations jumped at the opportunity to uphold spain's throne.
 * the war of the spanish succession- Bourbon family became ruler of spain. price: commercial concessions that allowed frnch merchants to operate in Seville and permitted England to trade slaves in spanish america...spains commercial monopoly was being legally broken

Bourbon Reforms Pombal and Brazil
 * reforms aimed at strengthening the state and its economy
 * Charles III - movedby economic nationalism and desire for strong central govt to institute economic, administrative, and military reforms in spain and its empires
 * goal: make govt more powerful, effective, and better to direct the economy
 * Jesuit order was prime target (controlled 100,000 indians just in paraguay...had too much power)
 * french bureaucratic models were introduced
 * taxes tightened
 * navy reformed, and new ships built
 * new ports in spain and america opened for west indies trade
 * govt took active role in economy
 * silver production in Mexico outstripped that of Peru which saw increased production
 * long run changes: removal of Creole in govt, creation of militia with creole officer corps., opening of commerce
 * new crops introduced
 * reduce gold smuggling and tax evasion
 * monopoly companies formed to stimulate agriculture and were given right to import large numbers of slaves
 * abolished slavery in protugal
 * Pombal hoped to revitalize the colonies by strentheneing the mother country
 * the colonies' classic problem: they depended so much on European markets, etc. that their range of action limited

reforms, reactions, and revolts
 * colonies of spain and portugal were rapidly growing
 * declining mortality rates, increasing fertility levels, increasing immigration from Europe, and thriving slave trade
 * comunero revolt- (colombia) 1781-royal army defeated...