The Sounds of Silence

Nineteenth-Century Portugal and the Abolition of the Slave Trade
1. Auflage 2006
ISBN: 978-1-57181-447-0
Verlag: Berghahn Books

Buch, Englisch, Band 4, 304 Seiten, Format (B × H): 161 mm x 240 mm, Gewicht: 625 g

Reihe: European Expansion & Global Interaction

Portugal was the pioneer of the transatlantic slave trade, the ruler of both Brazil and Angola — the all time champions of that trade —, and one of the last western countries to decree the abolition of slaving institutions. Paradoxically, and in spite of the overwhelming number of works devoted to the problems of slavery produced in recent decades, little was known about the way Portugal dealt with the twilight of the age of slavery and, most of all, with abolitionism. This book offers the first study of the abolition of the Portuguese slave trade, covering the period from the end of the eighteenth century to the mid-1860s, and bringing to life a dark and silenced corner in the history of the odious commerce. Based on a thorough examination of Portuguese and British historical sources — most of them never used before —, and on his awareness of the international scholarship in the field in which he writes, it investigates not only the Portuguese pro and anti-abolitionist attitudes but also the underlying ideologies, and whether and how those attitudes and ideologies changed over time and in the light of events in the political, economic and social spheres.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Marques, João Pedro

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Weltgeschichte & Geschichte einzelner Länder und Gebietsräume Europäische Geschichte
• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Internationale Beziehungen Kolonialismus, Imperialismus
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtliche Themen Kolonialgeschichte, Geschichte des Imperialismus
• Sozialwissenschaften Soziologie | Soziale Arbeit Spezielle Soziologie Soziale Ungleichheit, Armut, Rassismus

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Abbreviations Used in the Notes

Preface

List of Illustrations

Chapter 1. Portugal and Abolitionism at the End of the Eighteenth Century and Beginning of the Nineteenth Century: from Detachment to Political Commitment

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Tolerationism and Abolitionism

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Portugal, a Country Aloof

Chapter 2. The Maintenance of the Slave Trade in an Abolitionist Context: from the Beginning of British Pressure to Brazilian Secession

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The British Pincer

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A Time for Concessions: from Vienna to the Convention of 1817

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In the Realm of Ideas: Defending Gradualism

Chapter 3. From the Loss of Brazil to the Liberal Wars: Early Abolitionist Proposals and the Return of Silence

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The Deadlocks in the Search for Abolitionist Consensus

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The Pathways to Abolitionism in Portugal

Chapter 4. Plans and Stratagems: the Septembristas and the Problem of the Suppression of the Slave Trade

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Pressures and Procrastinations

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The Septembristas Ambiguity on Abolition

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Public Opinion and the Suppression of the Slave Trade

Chapter 5. National Honour: Portugal and the Struggle Against the Slave Traders in the Mid Nineteenth Century

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The End of the Transatlantic Slave Trade: a Victory for Persistence

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Portugal and the Slave Traders

Chapter 6. Colonial Stalemates: ‘New Brazils’ or Real Africas?

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Images of Africa

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Failed Colonial Plans

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Arican Issues in the Cortes

Conclusions

Appendixes

Bibliography

Index

Über Autor(innen)

Marques, João Pedro
João Pedro Marques has been a researcher at the Instituto de Investigação Científica Tropical (Lisbon) since 1987. He obtained a PhD in History from the Universidade Nova de Lisboa, where he taught African History during the 1990s. He has published several books and articles, both in Portugal and France, on the subjects of slavery, abolition and other colonial issues.