The name is absent

The Story of Brazilian Commerce 247

BRAZILIAN EXPORTS UNDER THE IMPERIAL REGIME

When political independence was restored, and we re-
covered our Portuguese nationality, in 1640, there was
already in Lisbon a large community of English merchants
who became and long remained the real agents of Brazilian
trade with England. The powerful company, established in
Lisbon in 1649, as we saw, soon became the instrument of
English interests. Difficulties had arisen between the Por-
tuguese Monarchy and the English Commonwealth, but
were settled by the Treaty of 1654. English ships sailing
in the Portuguese fleet were to pay us more than the ordi-
nary duties for their goods; English merchants were allowed
to trade freely with Brazil in all goods except fish, wine, oil,
and dye-wood; extra ships for the fleet were to be hired in
England. The treaty was undoubtedly a fine deduction from
the “Navigation Acts” and exhibited, for the first time,
England’s ascendency over her old ally.

Wallis Chapman in his book on Commercial Relations of
England with Portugal shows that the Anglo-Dutch rivalry
was still alive in Brazil when the English pledged themselves
to protect Portuguese colonies against Holland. It was
already clear that the important sugar trade through Lisbon
was the only way for Portugal to make returns to England,
as the imports to Portugal were twice the amount of Portu-
guese exports to England.

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