CorreioBraziliense

The first Brazilian newspaper was not the first newspaper in Brazil. That's because O Correio Braziliense, edited from 1808 onward by Hippolyto Joseph da Costa Pereira Furtado de Mendonça (or simply Hipólito José da Costa), was printed abroad — more precisely, in the English capital, London. And it could not have been otherwise. After all, the journalist set himself up as a fierce critic of everything most archaic that the Portuguese Court represented — more precisely, ministers, courtiers, and practices tied to monarchic absolutism.

Figure 1 — Portrait of Hipólito José da Costa. Anonymous. n.d. Artistic Collection of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Itamaraty Palace

Image description: This is a painting depicting a man seated on a red sofa. The figure is wearing a black coat with brown fur trim along the edges. His shirt is white with a green and blue bow. He holds an open book with both hands. The background is a blend of yellow and brown tones, suggesting an interior room.

From the arrival of the royal family in Rio de Janeiro, in 1808, to the year Brazil proclaimed its independence, 1822, the Correio Braziliense served as a vehicle for liberal ideas among Brazilians — or rather, among "brasilienses," since, before independence, that was the demonym for Portuguese people born in America.

Hipólito José took on a mission he considered educational: he would provide readers with a critical repertoire and "politiquês" (political jargon) lexicon, so that they could take part in (or at least become aware of) the political facts and processes around them. The newspaper was often written in a serialized format, with articles divided across different editions — always with an instructive purpose. There were also translations of literary classics.

The compilation of issues every six months, in individual volumes, was justified as a practical way to carry them from London to Brazil, including to escape censorship. After all, its circulation was banned, in the kingdom. Despite this, the periodical had its loyal readers. Smuggling took place aboard English ships that, since the Opening of the Ports, decreed by d. João VI in 1808, crowded the Brazilian coast. The relationship between the Correio Braziliense and England was there from the start, since the financier of the venture was a member of the English royalty: the Duke of Sussex, Prince Augustus Frederick — ninth in the line of succession to the English king, George III. The duke was a mason, like Hipólito José, which fostered the closeness between the two.

Figure 2 — Duke of Sussex, Grand Master Augustus Frederick. Anonymous. c.1812. Museum Freemasonry / Wikimedia Commons

Image description: This is a painting depicting a seated man at a table. The figure is wearing a green coat with gold buttons and a white cravat. Across his chest, a red sash can be seen with hanging medals. In front of him, there is a table covered with a red cloth, on which lie an open book and a wooden gavel. In the background, there is a chair with gold details and a round object, possibly a lamp, hanging on the wall.

It's impossible not to notice the contrast between how much Hipólito wrote about Brazil and how little time the journalist actually lived in the country. On the other hand, that didn't stop him from putting his projects for Brazil into print in the Correio Braziliense. One of his greatest concerns had to do with the integration of the territory. After all, the north and south of Lusophone America maintained closer ties with Portugal than with each other — communication between Maranhão and Lisbon, for example, was more practical and swift than between Rio de Janeiro and São Luís. Hipólito José wrote at length about the importance of opening roads and strengthening a system of communication between the provinces — in other words, the establishment of a postal service.

Also as part of this integration project, the Correio Braziliense was the voice of an idea that, more than a century later, was put into practice in the country: the transfer of the capital from the coast to the sertão, that is, to the interior of Brazil — in this case, also for security reasons, since the seat of government would be less exposed to foreign attacks.

Figure 3 — Edition of the Correio Braziliense. Portugal, 1817. Wikimedia Commons

Image description: The image is a historical document in black and white. At the top, it reads "CORREIO BRAZILIENSE" in capital letters. Below, there is a date: "DE JULHO, 1817." Next, there is an excerpt from a poem attributed to Camões, with references to fields and the arrival of more world. The title "POLITICA" stands out, followed by "REYNO UNIDO DE PORTUGAL BRAZIL E ALGARVES." The main text mentions a decree from the governors of Portugal banning the Correio Braziliense. The document contains details about the royal order of September 17, 1811, and the prohibition of seditious and inflammatory publications.

In the 14 years it circulated, the Correio Braziliense commented on internal uprisings, such as the Pernambucan Revolution of 1817, and the sequence of events that led to Brazil's independence, in September 1822. Although the Correio Braziliense had at first been a supporter of a great Luso-Brazilian empire, as the years of the 1820s went by, its thinking turned to supporting the independence project. When news arrived that d. Pedro had been proclaimed emperor of Brazil, Hipólito da Costa shut down his periodical, no longer seeing a need for the newspaper's existence. He was invited by Pedro I to serve as honorary consul in England — a strategic and highly prestigious invitation. However, he died before he could take up the post, in September 1823.

Bibliographic References

ENDERS, Armelle. The history of Rio de Janeiro. Rio de Janeiro: Gryphus Editora, 2015.

LUSTOSA, Isabel. The journalist who imagined Brazil — Time, life and thought of Hipólito da Costa (1774 - 1823). São Paulo: Unicamp, 2019.

________________. Printed insults: the journalists' war during the Independence, 1821-1823. São Paulo: Cia das Letras, 2000.

PEDREIRA, Jorge Miguel Viana; COSTA, Fernando Dores. D. João VI: a prince between two continents. São Paulo: Companhia das Letras, 2008.

SODRÉ, Nelson Werneck. História Da Imprensa No Brasil. Rio de Janeiro: Maud, 1999.