In addition to Earth Day, on April 22 is celebrated the supposed ‘discovery’ of Brazil. On that date in 1500, the Portuguese explorers arrived in Brazil. Under the command of Pedro Alvares Cabral, they took possession of the new land.
But it is estimated that already lived in Brazil at that time five million inhabitants, who the Portuguese called Indians.
Behind the ‘discovery’ of Brazil
The official reports of that period say that Cabral’s fleet departed from Portugal towards India in search of spices.
However, without a clear reason, they left the initial route and started to cross the Atlantic, also called “long ocean.
Incidentally, the letters of Pero Vaz de Caminha, who described the new earth and the whole trip, showed no surprise or excitement. He does not talk about the reasons for the deviation from the route or show surprise at sight of the territory. Even after a month of traveling and about 3600 km traveled in an “unexpected”.
Was Cabral arrival accidental?
There are reports that Cabral was not the first European to arrive in Brazil. In 1498, the captain Duarte Pacheco Pereira would arrive the Brazilian northern coast. However, his “discovery” would have been kept secret.
Nevertheless, Don Manual, the king of Portugal at the time, as aware of the mission and the arrival of Columbus to the Caribbean.
Another dubious factor is that at that time, the routes used for navigation were kept in complete secrecy. Overall, it guarantees the supremacy and commercial interests of the nation that commanded. Because of this, the idea of the discovery of Brazil be accidental still lose more strength.
Initially, the Portuguese used the indigenous labor for the extraction of “Brazil wood” (Pau-Brasil). In general, this reddish wood was very coveted in Europe for dyeing textiles, for example.
The amount of “Brazil Wood” that existed in the new land inspired a name change: instead of Land of Vera Cruz, as initial called, It was renamed to Brazil.