Liberal Revolution of 1842

In 1841 there was a revolt in the Brazilian provinces of Minas Gerais and São Paulo against the measures taken by the Conservative cabinet. The dismissal of several Liberal provincial presidents, the dissolution of the Chamber of Deputies, the reform of the Criminal Procedure Code, and the reinstatement of the Council of State were acts strongly opposed by Liberals since they weakened provincial authority and strengthened the central government. The conspirators aimed at bringing down the Conservative cabinet and reversing the changes, but the revolt was poorly planned and miscalculated. The national uprising, which was expected to follow events in São Paulo and Minas Gerais, never materialized, and the rebellious military forces were few, disorganized, and plagued by desertion. The central government, in turn, acted swiftly with a military campaign led by Luís Alves de Lima E Silva, the baron of Caxias, which brought the revolt to an end in August 1842.

As the first major challenge to the reign of Pedro II, the revolt was especially threatening to the central government because of the political and social status of its leaders and the geographical location of the provinces involved. Its defeat accelerated the pace of political and administrative centralization. In 1844 amnesty was granted to all participants.

See alsoPedro II of Brazilxml .

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Roderick J. Barman, Brazil: The Forging of a Nation, 1798–1852 (1988), pp. 212-216.

Additional Bibliography

Chamone, Carla Simone. Festejos imperiais: Festas cívias em Minas Gerais, 1815–1845. Bragança Paulista: Centro de Documentaçao e Apoio a Pesquisa em Historia da Educaçao, 2002.

Graça Filho, Afonso de Alencastro. A princesa do oeste e o mito da decadencia de Minas Gerais: São João del Rei, 1831–1888. São Paulo: Annablume, 2002.

Kiddy, Elizabeth W. Blacks of the Rosary: Memory and History in Minas Gerais, Brazil. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2005.

Langfur, Hal. The Forbidden Lands: Colonial Identity, Frontier Violence, and the Persistence of Brazil's Eastern Indians, 1750–1830. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2006.

Marinho, José Antonio. Historia do movimiento politico que no anno de 1842 teve lugar na provinca de Minas Geraes. Rio de Janeiro: Typographia Alameida, 1939.

                                          Lydia M. Garner