Fragiles powers: the political dynamic of the transatlantic Portuguese monarchy – governors, judgesand the local nobility in Goiás (1778-1801)

Abstract

From the particularities of Goiás in the 18th century, marked by some large geographical distances and a peculiar rhythm of the events, we are following some fights between officers of Royal nomination and members of the Senate of Vila Boa. In Goiás, connected to the Atlantic Portuguese world, the monarch (head of the monarchy) represents the figure of a distant judge. Whose decisions imposing limits on the actions of the contenders. In this scenario, to denounce the strengths and, at the same time, the weaknesses of the protagonists, the dynamics of these conflicts reveals the nature of power relations in the hinterlands of Goiás.