“Muy diminuta do que em sy he, muito menos importante do que todos Conhecem”: Capitanias, governos e elites locais no norte do estado Do Brasil (Pernambuco e Paraíba, 1730-1756)

Abstract

This article analyzes the content of the speeches of captains-mores, general governors, businessmen and the Paraíba city council of Nossa Senhora das Neves with the interest of understanding details of the historical process that resulted in the subordination of Paraíba in january 1756. The objective is that this case study can contribute to the recent historiographic efforts that sought to explain the functioning of spatial dynamics in the Portuguese overseas, notably regarding the mechanisms of constitution of hierarchies and jurisdictions involving captaincies and colonial governments.