Cartography and restoration of overseas empires on the Southern Atlantic (17th century)

• Grant number: 21/08073-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Effective date (Start): October 01, 2021
• Effective date (End): September 30, 2022
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - History - Modern and Contemporary History
• Principal Investigator: Denise Aparecida Soares de Moura
• Grantee: Rodrigo Canossa Barbosa
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Humanas e Sociais (FCHS). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Franca. Franca , SP, Brazil

Abstract

This research project aims to analyses the ways found together by the English and Portuguese monarchies to restructure their maritime empires over the Atlantic in the context of the post-Restoration of England in 1660 and the end of the Iberian Union for Portugal in 1640. The converging point of the histories of both crowns was the marriage of Catherine of Bragança with Charles II of England in 1662. This event implicated an economic, military, and political alliance between nations. From this particular data, the project shall have as a starting point of analysis the expedition of Sir John Narborough to the Magellan Straights in 1669-71, I will be analyzing both his diary and maps of the said trip. With this, I aim to make use of cartographic knowledge to investigate the ways found by both crowns to legitimate their imperial presence on the Southern Atlantic in the final years of the 17th century, especially through the visual narratives contained in the said diary and maps. The chosen methodology is from the so-called critical cartography, which proposes to interpret maps in human terms and concepts and not only as technical documents. Thus the proposal of this project makes itself relevant especially because of its historiographically underworked theme of the Southern Atlantic region within the context of Portuguese and above all English presence, and also of the said diary and maps which were also underworked. (AU)