Tupinambás Uprising
Indigenous revolt against the Portuguese domination in Brazil. / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Tupinambá Uprising (1617-1621), also called the Tupinambá Revolt, took place on January 13, 1618, and was led by the tuxaua (cacique) Cabelo de Velha, who gathered several native indigenous groups from the busy Mairi region (now the city of Belém of Pará)[1] to fight against the Portuguese, due to the abuses committed by these colonizers when they exploited the indigenous labor force in the Conquest of Pará. This movement was one of a series of uprisings that took place in the region between 1617 and 1619. The disputes culminated in the attack in January 1619 by the Tupinambá on the Presépio Fort (a Portuguese fortification), located on the shores of Guajará Bay.[2]
At the beginning of the 17th century, the Portuguese were on expeditions through Brazilian territory. Where the region in the extreme north of the country was invaded by the English and the Dutch, who set up trading posts to exploit the raw material that would be sold in Europe. Thus, the Portuguese started military campaigns to strengthen their dominance in the Amazon territory and ensure the exploitation of local natural resources (sertão drugs),[3][4] due to the loss of competition in the Asian market for the Dutch. Where in 1580 occurred the Portuguese invasion and the establishment of a colonial nucleus with Captain Castelo Branco and,[5] in 1616, the settlers founded the city of Belém and settled in the Amazon, aiming to protect the entrance of the Amazon River. They made an alliance with the local native Tupinambás (people formed from the migration of Tupis who inhabited the northeastern coast).
The alliance with the Tupinambás of Pará, was mediated by the Maranhão ethnic group that already had a relationship with foreigners, seeking benefits in trade and in wars. However, the colonists then proceeded to enslave the Tupinambás, just as they had done with the indigenous people in the northeast of the country, the first to be conquered.
The abuses of slavery resulted in the union against the Portuguese. The captured indigenous suffered physical, cultural and religious impositions by the Portuguese, via Franciscan and Jesuit missionaries, in addition to serving as labor in colonial production. The uprisings resulted in massacres and imprisonment of the natives, who served as troops for the Portuguese disputes.