Tropical Versailles Empire, Monarchy, and the Portuguese Royal Court in Rio De Janeiro, 1808-1821

In 1807, to escape an invading Napoleonic army, the Portuguese Prince Regent and some 10,000 functionaries set sail for Brazil. Following the transfer of the court, Rio de Janeiro became a "tropical Versailles," a new world seat of European imperial power. In discourse and practice, residents and royal officials in Rio set out to transform a colonial capital into a royal court and to redefine the bases for the political legitimacy of an empire and monarchy centered in America. With the capital of the Portuguese empire in Brazil for the next thirteen years, an extraordinary inversion of political, economic, and cultural hierarchies that had governed colonial relations for centuries came to pass. Schultz's penetrating study provides an engaging look at a unique and riveting historical episode.Schultz, Kirsten is the author of 'Tropical Versailles Empire, Monarchy, and the Portuguese Royal Court in Rio De Janeiro, 1808-1821', published 2001 under ISBN 9780415929875 and ISBN 0415929873.