Brazil's Independence resulted in a centralized monarchy, with a unitary system of power concentrated in the figure of the sovereign and the Court based in Rio de Janeiro. However, other projects were envisioned. And the Portuguese merchant João Soares Lisboa imagined a Brazil different from the one that was taking shape at that moment.
Fully identified with the “Brazilianist cause” in the 1820s, João Soares Lisboa came from the Minho region to Brazil in 1800, at around 14 years old. His first destination was the city of Porto Alegre. There, he developed as a “vivandeiro” — that is, he supplied provisions — for the Portuguese troops fighting in the south, in a conflict that resulted in the annexation of the province of Cisplatina (present-day Uruguay).
Figure 1 — Review of the troops destined for Montevideo, at Praia Grande. Jean-Baptiste Debret, 1816, Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo / Wikimedia Commons [PINA07353]
Image description: This is a painting depicting a historical scene with several human figures on horseback and in carriages. From the left, we see soldiers with weapons in hand, followed by riders in motion. In the center, a group of people is in a horse-drawn carriage. On the right, more figures are mounted on horses, some appearing to be in conversation. In the background, there is a landscape with mountains and a clear blue sky.João Soares was successful in his career. In 1818, he consolidated his businesses and managed to insert himself into the mercantile network linked to that of the Court of Rio de Janeiro. But in the dispute over positions within the monarchy's institutional structure, Lisboa — like other merchants of similar origin, a kind of self-taught reader on mercantile practice — competed with other agents from traditional, wealthy families, who also shared their education at the University of Coimbra, in Portugal.
Since the transfer of the Court in 1808 — particularly after Brazil's elevation to the status of United Kingdom, together with Portugal and the Algarves, in 1815 —, being a merchant in Rio de Janeiro had a meaning that went beyond greater business opportunities and profits. There was a network of sociability that linked mercantile relations to a debate of ideas of Enlightenment origin, in which commerce would be an activity responsible for promoting civilization and the “general happiness of the nation.” Naturally, its agents would be the protagonists of this process. In this sense, the involvement of liberal professionals in the construction of a political imaginary for Brazil was not merely a possibility, but a necessity. And João Soares Lisboa decided to enter this arena.
At that time, there was no better way in Rio de Janeiro to spread a set of ideas than through print media — more specifically, producing a newspaper of a less informative and more pamphleteering nature — that is, of course, if the bearer of these reflections had the means to do so. Thus was born the Correio do Rio de Janeiro.
The newspaper followed a pattern typical of the time: it had four pages, filled alternately with an extensive commentary on political events that had taken place in Rio de Janeiro, or a response to some criticism suffered from another newspaper; the reproduction of editions of Portuguese periodicals whose editorial line was similar; and a section of readers' letters — which, despite the texts sent by real people, were often produced by the very hands of the newspapers' own writers. They used to create fictitious readers, using pseudonyms such as "Hum Constitucional de facto, e direito," "o Inimigo dos Tyranos," or "O Honrado Brasileiro."
João Soares Lisboa made the Correio do Rio de Janeiro one of the most popular newspapers in the city. And one of the most audacious. Its first issue was released in the midst of the excitement the city was experiencing in the months leading up to Independence, in April 1822. The merchant-editor decided to draft and promote a project for the country that combined the monarchical regime with republican principles — even though the term "republic" and its variations were avoided in speeches. Common good, participation and popular sovereignty, the perception that all are born equal, a latent natural law doctrine... these are just some of the traits of how he envisioned Brazil under the reign of D. Pedro I. His "monarchical-democratic" model, it should be noted, was envisioned by Soares Lisboa, but also shared by a niche of liberals, merchants like himself.
Figure 2 — Rua Direita, Rio de Janeiro [detail, depicting a group of liberal merchants], Félix Émile Taunay, 1823. Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo / Wikimedia Commons [PINA07424]
Image description: This is a painting depicting a historical scene. The image shows a building with a light-colored façade and old architectural details. On the left, there is a balcony with a black balustrade, where two people are watching. In the central area, a red door draws attention. On the right, several barred windows are visible. In the foreground, a crowd of people walks toward the left. The individuals are wearing formal nineteenth-century attire, including top hats and colorful coats.The radical image built up around João Soares Lisboa had its origins in his — at times somewhat bold — texts published in the Correio do Rio de Janeiro. In June 1822, D. Pedro called elections to choose the deputation responsible for drafting a Brazilian constitution. The choice of deputies, however, would not be made through direct popular vote. In doing so, D. Pedro went against a petition addressed to the prince regent, written by a group later called "brasílico," which included Joaquim Gonçalves Ledo, Father Januário da Costa, and Soares Lisboa himself.
The Correio called on the population of Rio de Janeiro to ratify the representation, and around six thousand people left their signatures in support of the proposal. Faced with the prince's refusal, the Correio's editor could not contain himself: "Ah! Sir, what have you done? [...] Who authorized V.A.R. [Your Royal Highness] to order the opposite of what the Peoples of this Province Represented to you?".
Despite this and other occasional criticisms of D. Pedro I, the true enemies of the Portuguese merchant were the “despots” and “tyrants.” “The veil of Mystery is entirely torn! So demanded the honor of all Portuguese of Brazil, their Liberty, their future greatness, the Glory of Their First Citizen, of Their first Emperor, of the First of Princes, of the Immortal Pedro!!!” — he wrote in a special edition of the Correio do Rio de Janeiro, precisely the first one after news of the Ipiranga cry had reached Rio. Soares Lisboa also wished that the sovereign would share his principles: “here is a pure democrat,” he wrote, referring to the emperor, who possessed markedly authoritarian traits.
Figure 3 — Correio Extraordinário do Rio de Janeiro, issue no. 3. September 21, 1822. Fundação Biblioteca Nacional.
Image description: The image is a page from an old newspaper, dated Saturday, September 21, 1822. It is in black and white and has a vertical layout, with the title "CORREIO EXTRAORDINARIO DO RIO DE JANEIRO" at the top. Below the title, there is a poem attributed to Filinto Elísio. The main text is left-aligned and mentions historical events related to the proclamation of Brazil's independence. There are no images or illustrations on the page.In July 1823, José Bonifácio was dismissed from his ministry by D. Pedro I. From then on, the former minister began to weave fierce criticism of the emperor's closest circle in his newspaper, O Tamoyo. In an unusual solution to counterbalance the situation, the emperor authorized José Soares Lisboa to write the Correio do Rio de Janeiro once again directly from his cell — to be printed afterward at the Typographia de Torres, fittingly located on the street of the jail. Pedro I knew that João Soares Lisboa would launch heavy ammunition against José Bonifácio — and one can speculate that he encouraged him to do so. In turn, the Correio would continue commenting on political events and publishing letters from readers that sounded more like the newspaper's own editorials.
João Soares continued publishing his periodical until November 24, 1823. It was banned once again, this time as part of an authoritarian move by Pedro I, who, exhausted with the constituents, sent troops to shut down the Assembly. João Soares Lisboa ended up being included among the “subversive” names, receiving once again a sentence of exile — this time outside the continent — in 1824.
The merchant, however, never actually left Brazil. The ship that was to take him to France docked first in Pernambuco. A plan for his escape had already been arranged with figures such as Frei Caneca. Soares Lisboa landed in Recife right in the middle of the Confederation of the Equator. He lived that republican experience intensely: he fought for it and gave his life for it. João Soares Lisboa died in combat in 1824.
Bibliographic References
ENDERS, Armelle. A história do Rio de Janeiro. Rio de Janeiro: Gryphus Editora, 2015.
FERREIRA, Paula Botafogo Caricchio. João Soares Lisboa against the bonifácia: the Hispanic-American experience during exile against the “Togal Despotism.” Outros Tempos: Pesquisa em Foco-História, v. 19, n. 33, p. 193-229, 2022.
FERREIRA, Paula Botafogo Caricchio. O exílio liberal no cone sul da América de 1820: o caso de João Soares Lisboa em Buenos Aires (1822-1823). Revista complutense de historia de América, n. 47, p. 67-88, 2021.
LUSTOSA, Isabel. Insultos impressos: the journalists' war during Independence, 1821-1823. São Paulo: Companhia das Letras, 2000.
SODRÉ, Nelson Werneck. História da imprensa no Brasil. Rio de Janeiro: Maud, 1999.
STARLING, Heloisa Maria Murgel; DE LIMA, Marcela Telles (Orgs.). Vozes do Brasil: a linguagem política na Independência (1820-1824). Brasília: Edições do Senado Federal, 2021.
Researcher: Davi Aroeira Kacowicz
