Adrift on an Inland Sea: Misinformation and the Limits of Empire in the Brazilian Backlands

The Portuguese crown attempted to extend imperial control over Brazil's interior and exploit its gold and diamond deposits using enslaved labor. Elite vassals, soldiers, and scientific experts conducted overland expeditions that encountered Native peoples, runaway slaves, poor, and criminals who reshaped imperial ambitions. This book measures how misinformation destabilized European sovereignty in the Americas, contributing to histories of empire, frontiers, and borderlands, knowledge production, and scientific exploration.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 456 pages
Publication date: 03 January 2023
Publisher: Stanford University Press

From 1750 until Brazil achieved its independence in 1822, the Portuguese crown relentlessly pursued its ambition to extend imperial control over the vast and expansive interior of the colony, resembling a vast sea. In pursuit of this goal, the crown sought to exploit the rich resources of gold and diamonds found within the colony, utilizing the labor of enslaved individuals. Elite vassals, soldiers, and scientific experts were dispatched from Lisbon to the Brazilian backlands, tasked with exploring numerous frontier zones and establishing royal authority. However, their conduct in these remote regions posed significant challenges for the crown to regulate effectively.

The overland expeditions these individuals undertook encountered a diverse range of actors who operated beyond the purview of the state. Seminomadic Native peoples, runaway slaves, itinerant poor, and individuals deemed criminals all posed threats to the empire's ambitions. These actors eluded capture, defied authority, and reshaped the course of imperial endeavors, often challenging the very foundations of European sovereignty in the Americas.

This book delves into the profound impact of misinformation on European sovereignty in the Americas during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. By drawing on interdisciplinary scholarship in the fields of ethnohistory, slavery and diaspora studies, and legal and literary history, Hal Langfur examines how false information destabilized the authority of European powers. The book offers a significant contribution to histories of empire, frontiers, and borderlands, as well as knowledge production and scientific exploration during this period.

The Portuguese crown's relentless pursuit of imperial control and exploitation in Brazil exemplifies the complex and multifaceted nature of colonialism. The use of enslaved labor, the challenges of regulating distant territories, and the interactions with a diverse range of actors who operated outside the state's purview all contributed to the destabilization of European sovereignty in the Americas. Through its examination of misinformation, this book sheds light on the intricate web of power dynamics and the profound impact of false information on the shaping of historical events.

Weight: 690g
Dimension: 153 x 228 x 30 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781503633964