Winner of the Dom João de Castro Prize for Portuguese History This is the story of the first and one of the greatest colonial empires: its birth, apotheosis, and decline. By approaching the history of the Portuguese empire thematically, A. J. R. Russell-Wood is able to pursue ideas and make connections that previously have been constrained by strict chronological approaches. Using the study of movement as a focus, Russell-Wood gains unique insight into the diversity, breadth, and balance between the competing interests and priorities that characterized the Portuguese culture and its expansion spanning four centuries' events on four different continents.

Featuring updates and revisions that reflect recent historiography, this new edition of The Portuguese Empire in Asia 1500-1700 presents a comprehensive overview of Portuguese imperial history that considers Asian and European perspectives. Features an argument-driven history with a clear chronological structure Considers the latest developments in English, French, and Portuguese historiography Offers a balanced view in a divisive area of historical study Includes updated Glossary and Guide to Further Reading

In 1807, at the height of the Napoleonic wars, the Portuguese prince regent Dom João made an extraordinary decision. Although horrified by the idea of sea travel, he opted to transplant his entire court and government to Portugal's largest colony, Brazil. With French troops closing in on Lisbon, aristocrats, ministers, priests and servants - a staggering 10,000 in all - clambered on board the rickety Portuguese fleet. After a rough transatlantic passage they spilled off their ships bedraggled, lice-ridden and dressed in rags, to the astonishment of their new world subjects. Thus began a unique 13-year period of imperial rule from the tropics. Rio de Janeiro was soon graced with a new opera house, lush botanical gardens and a royal palace - a 'tropical Versailles' set against the city's stunning jungle-clad mountains. But this metropolitan façade only partially obscured the brutal workings of what was then the largest slaving port in the Americas. While the court grappled with the dark side of its own empire, Brazil, with its eclectic mix of African, European and indigenous influences, was coming of age. Patrick Wilcken brings this remarkable period to the page, blending vivid contemporary testament with a rich evocation of the one time in history when European royalty went native.

This book charts the convergence of science, culture, and politics across Portugal's empire, showing how a global geographical concept was born. In accessible, narrative prose, this book explores the unexpected forms that science took in the early modern world. It highlights little-known linkages between Asia and the Atlantic world.

A comprehensive overview and reinterpretation of Portugal's formation and history up to 1807 and of its wide-flung maritime empire.