The Independence of Bahia (), also called the Independence of Brazil in Bahia (), was the movement that, beginning on 19 February 1822 and concluding on 2 July 1823, secured the integration of Bahia as a province in the Empire of Brazil, consolidating the country's independence.
Salvador, the capital of the and one of the most important cities of the Kingdom of Brazil, then part of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil, and the Algarves, joined the Liberal Revolution of Porto in 1820. With the convening of the Constituent Cortes in Lisbon in January 1821, the province sent its representatives, including , to defend local interests. The city split into factions: the liberals - uniting both Portuguese and Brazilians - sought to preserve the status quo achieved when the Portuguese royal court relocated to Brazil and elevated it to the rank of a kingdom, while the Portuguese wished to return to the prior colonial condition.Luís Henrique Dias Tavares in: Diversos (1973). Aspects of July 2nd. State Secretariat of Education and Culture. pp. unnumbered. As tensions rose, sides hardened: on one end, the Portuguese sought to keep the province as a colony; on the other, Brazilians - liberals, conservatives, monarchists, and even republicans - joined forces in a common struggle. The conflict, ongoing for nearly a year, only unified after 14 June 1822, when the Chamber of Santo Amaro da Purificação proclaimed national unity and recognized the authority of prince Pedro of Braganza.
Although preceded by the Beberibe Convention and reactions to the Dia do Fico, the struggle for independence in Bahia began before Brazil's official separation from Portugal on 7 September 1822, only coming to fruition almost a year after it. Unlike the relatively peaceful proclamation at the Ipiranga stream, the struggle in Bahia against Portugal came at the cost of bloody land and naval battles. On 8 November 1822, the Battle of Pirajá took place. French General Pierre Labatut, hired by Pedro I to fight for Brazilian independence, reinforced the troops besieging Bahia's capital with Major (later Colonel) 's brigade, consisting of 1,300 soldiers from Pernambuco, Bahia, and Rio de Janeiro. They repelled three Portuguese assaults, causing 80 deaths and leaving another 80 wounded. In April 1823, the imperial fleet under British Admiral Thomas Cochrane arrived in Salvador and blockaded the port. Deprived of food supplies and unable to receive reinforcements, the Portuguese evacuated during the night of 1–2 July, carrying away whatever riches they could. On 2 July 1823, the Liberation Army triumphantly entered the city, already abandoned by the Portuguese. Over the course of the movement, which lasted one year and four months, around 150 Brazilians were killed in combat. That day became a public holiday in Bahia and is celebrated annually with civic parades retracing the route taken by General Labatut in 1823 through Salvador, in what is known as the Bahia Independence Festival.
Context Background
Since the Bahian Conspiracy (1798), it can be said that in Bahia, even more than in Minas Gerais during the Inconfidência Mineira (1789), the feeling of independence from Portugal was deeply rooted in the population. While in Minas the conspiratorial movement took place among the wealthiest families, in Bahia, humble people actively participated, for example by posting posters on the streets urging everyone's support.
The Liberal Revolution of Porto (1820) had enormous repercussions in Bahia, where the number of Portuguese was large. As a result, in February 1821 a constitutionalist conspiracy broke out in Salvador. Cipriano Barata, José Pedro de Alcântara, Captain João Ribeiro Neves and others took part in it. After the Commander of Arms was arrested and the imprisoned soldiers were released, a proclamation was read urging:
And he concluded:
The liberal conspirators wanted, as in Portugal, a constitution that would limit royal power. Some were cleverly convinced that the real fight should be to maintain the sovereignty in Brazil, among them the future Marquis of Barbacena, then Marshal Felisberto Caldeira Brant Pontes who, despite being Brazilian, led the government's reaction, together with then Colonel Inácio Luís Madeira de Melo. Fighting continued until the rebels won, and the people proclaimed the new state of affairs in Praça da Câmara. The Governor, Count of Palma, went to the City Council and resigned.
The Portuguese and Brazilians were united and formed a Governing Board. But the situation would not last.
Political crisis of 1821–1822
With the return of Jonh VI to Portugal (April 1821), with Prince Regent D. Pedro de Alcântara remaining in Rio de Janeiro, who had been ordered to return to Portugal by a letter from the Courts of Lisbon, it became clear to the Brazilians that the former metropolis would not accept the status of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves. Among the troops, united in constitutionalist sentiment, the split between the Portuguese and Brazilians grew more pronounced. Intense hatred resulted in many partial conflicts and rumors that, on July 12, 1821, caused the Portuguese to gather in the barracks to defend themselves against a possible attack by the Brazilians.
On November 12, Portuguese soldiers took to the streets of Salvador, attacking Brazilian soldiers in a physical confrontation in Praça da Piedade, resulting in deaths and injuries. The population, fearful, began a gradual exodus to the Recôncavo region. The year ended with tensions rising.
On January 31, 1822, a new Junta was elected, and on February 11, news arrived that Brigadier Inácio Luís Madeira de Melo had been appointed Commander of Arms for the province of Bahia. He was the soldier who had supported the Count of Palma a year earlier. The order for his appointment arrived four days later. The people of Bahia had a commander who had already declared himself against their ideals. From June 1822 to July 1823, the struggle continued between the provisional government of the province, elected in June, which was in favor of independence, and the Portuguese forces under the command of Brigadier Madeira de Melo, who were concentrated in Salvador.
Resistance to Madeira de Melo and the first martyr of Brazil In Bahia, three factions were formed, which would keep the fight going: Supporters of maintaining the colonial regime — almost exclusively made up of Portuguese people; Constitutionalists of Brazil — defenders of a constitution for Brazil, as a Kingdom, made up of Portuguese and Brazilians; Republicans — supporters of political emancipation, with the adoption of a republican regime (similar to the United States), made up almost exclusively of Brazilians.
In command of the Arms was Brigadier Manuel Pedro, who had strengthened the Brazilians, strategically anticipating a fight. His dismissal and the appointment of Madeira de Melo were a severe blow to the national party.
Madeira de Melo's inauguration was prevented by the Brazilians, under the pretext of the lack of minor formalities. Meanwhile, the people began to defend the name of Manoel Pedro. Madeira de Melo sought support from the Portuguese merchants of the city, in addition to the Infantry (12th) and Cavalry regiments and units of the Portuguese Navy. For their part, the Brazilians in Bahia had the Legion of Hunters, the Artillery regiment and the 1st Infantry Regiment.
On February 18, 1822, a council of councilors, judges and the Governing Board met to settle the issue of the inauguration. A military junta was proposed as a solution, under the presidency of Madeira de Melo. In practice, it was his victory over opposing interests.
The Portuguese troops had been on standby since the 16th, while the sailors roamed the streets, making provocations — Madeira de Melo had stated that, should any threat to the constitution occur, he would act without consulting the Military Junta. Victorious, he paraded through the streets, inspecting the fortifications, challenging the garrisons with a national majority. At dawn on the 19th, the first shots were fired at the Fort of São Pedro, where the Portuguese troops had rushed from São Bento. Salvador was transformed into a war zone, and violent clashes occurred in Mercês, Praça da Piedade and Campo da Pólvora.
Despite the fierce defense, the Portuguese troops took the barracks where the 1st Infantry Battalion was meeting. The Portuguese sailors celebrated the victory, having attacked houses, people and invaded the Lapa Convent where some rebels had taken refuge, and assassinated its abbess, Sister Joana Angélica.
The only thing left to do was to take the Fort of São Pedro. Madeira de Melo prepared to bombard the fortification—one of the few entirely on land, in the center of the city. During the siege, they were attacked on the sides of Garcia. On the night of the 21st, the soldiers of the fort withdrew through the sea bulwark, avoiding bloodshed. Brigadier Manuel Pedro was arrested and sent to Lisbon.
In power, the "Portuguese Party" terrified Brazilians. On March 2, 1822, Madeira de Melo finally took the oath before the City Council.
The war
July 1822: Bahia in turmoil
The Brazilians still in the capital responded by throwing stones at Madeira de Melo's military actions, and during the Saint Joseph procession (March 21, 1822), the Portuguese were stoned.
Regarding this episode, Madeira de Melo wrote:
The newspaper Constitucional, by Francisco Corte Imperial and Francisco Gê Acaiaba de Montezuma (who would later form the first government during the struggles), was responsible for the interests of the people of Bahia, and it gave vent to the feelings of the majority of the people.
The city of Salvador witnessed the ever-increasing exodus of its residents, which increased with the arrival of reinforcements in Madeira de Melo: a ship, one of those carrying troops from Rio de Janeiro back to Portugal, docked in the capital, leaving its soldiers there.
The atmosphere in the Recôncavo was increasingly revolutionary: several strongholds, starting with the Tower House in March 1822, began to welcome Brazilian soldiers from Forte de São Pedro. Metals from various farms were melted down and converted into war material.
Under the leadership of Lieutenant Colonel Joaquim Pires de Carvalho e Albuquerque, a group initially formed by just over 500 men began to take shape as an improvised army. Over time, this number grew to around 1,500 combatants. On the other side, the Portuguese forces were numerically superior, with over 3,000 soldiers. The clashes that followed were isolated and did not involve large numbers of troops. It was a guerrilla war, focused on occupying strategic points in the region.
Consultation with municipal councils
The deputies of the province of Bahia in the Courts of Lisbon — among them Luís Paulino d'Oliveira Pinto da França, who had been sent by Jonh VI to negotiate with Madeira de Melo (arriving after the outcome of the conflict) — consulted their districts by letter, asking what the municipalities' opinion was on what Bahia's relationship with the metropolis should be. Taking the lead, the towns of Santo Amaro,Pedreira, Pedro (1977). Historical-Geographical Memory of Santo Amaro. Brasília: Federal Senate Graphic Center Cachoeira and São Francisco do Conde, followed by the others, expressed their support for the province to be transferred to the regency of D. Pedro, in Rio de Janeiro. Behind these statements, there was a clear desire to separate from Portugal, which they already considered an oppressive figure.