O império luso-brasileiro e a questão da dependência inglesa - um estudo de caso: a política mercantilista durante a Época Pombalina e a sombra do Tratado de Methuen

Abstract

In this paper, the author analyzes the relations between Portugal and England during the 18th century, with emphasis on the period corresponding to the reign of D. José I, during which the Marquis of Pombal, his Secretary of State, wielded considerable power. With the Treaty of Methuen (1703) as a backdrop, the text addresses the issues which, over successive periods, marked the tensions and conflicts in the economic and diplomatic relations between England and Portugal. Special attention is given to the review of documents of the era, from the National Library of Lisbon and the Lisbon Academy of Sciences. Contrary to what a rather crystallized tradition teaches us, the British-Portuguese relations during Pombal’s period are rather ambiguous, fluctuating between Portugal’s dependence with regard to economic interests and British political support, and the defense of trade, manufacturing and agricultural interests of the Portuguese crown and its overseas empire.