Mocambos
Encyclopedia
The mocambos were village
-sized communities
mainly of runaway
slaves
in colonial
Brazil
, during the Portuguese
rule
.
A mocambo differed from a quilombo
in size - a quilombo, like the Quilombo dos Palmares
, might embrace many distinct mocambos. The terms were not always used consistently, however.
, and the inaccessible frontier of Alagoas
, site of Palmares, the largest fugitive community.
Mocambos are Exile Communities established by fugitive Brazilian slaves between the 18th and 19th century.
The purpose of these Settlements was to protect the slaves from the Portuguese opposition, thanks to their hidden location, which was difficult to find for the Punitive Military Expeditions.
Mocambos were a threat to the Economy and the Social Fabric of the Slave Regime, because the Parasitic Economy of these Communities was mostly composed of Theft, Extortion and Raiding.
Though the minority of Communities lived of Agriculture and Arm Trades.
Mocambos were not controlled by the government and because of the high percentage of Brazilian slaves, which incorporated one third of the total Population, the number and the importance of Mocambos was continually increasing.
For this reason Mocambos' inhabitants were executed by Punitive Military Expeditions and the children born in the Mocambos became property of the Leaders of the exterminating Expeditions.
, whose geography aided escape, and the result was a great number of fugitives and mocambos.
In plantation zones, slaves often made up over 60 percent of the inhabitants. They lived in bad
conditions in terms of food and housing and they had to deal with particularly cruel or sadistic masters.
The region of Bahia in which appeared a great quantity of mocambos was the southern towns of Cairù, Camamù and Ilhéus
. In these towns there was the most part of the production of manioc, the basic
subsistence crop of Brazil.
A second and still unstudied method of slave control and capture in Brazil was the calculated use of Indians as slave catchers and as a counterforce to mocambos and possible slave resorts.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
-sized communities
Residential community
A residential community is a community, usually a small town or city, that is composed mostly of residents, as opposed to commercial businesses and/or industrial facilities, all three of which are considered to be the three main types of occupants of the typical community.Residential communities...
mainly of runaway
Fugitive
A fugitive is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from private slavery, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals...
slaves
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
in colonial
Colonial Brazil
In the history of Brazil, Colonial Brazil, officially the Viceroyalty of Brazil comprises the period from 1500, with the arrival of the Portuguese, until 1815, when Brazil was elevated to kingdom alongside Portugal as the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves.During the over 300 years...
Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, during the Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
rule
Portuguese Empire
The Portuguese Empire , also known as the Portuguese Overseas Empire or the Portuguese Colonial Empire , was the first global empire in history...
.
A mocambo differed from a quilombo
Quilombo
A quilombo is a Brazilian hinterland settlement founded by people of African origin, Quilombolas, or Maroons. Most of the inhabitants of quilombos were escaped slaves and, in some cases, a minority of marginalised Portuguese, Brazilian aboriginals, Jews and Arabs, and/or other non-black,...
in size - a quilombo, like the Quilombo dos Palmares
Palmares (quilombo)
Palmares, or Quilombo dos Palmares, was a fugitive community of escaped slaves and others in colonial Brazil that developed from 1605 until its suppression in 1694. It was located in what is today the Brazilian state of Alagoas.-Quilombos or mocambos:...
, might embrace many distinct mocambos. The terms were not always used consistently, however.
History
The most common form of slave resistance in colonial Brasil was flight, and a characteristic problem of the Brazilian slave regime was the continual and widespread existence of fugitive communities called mocambos, ladeiras, magotes, or quilombos. The three major areas of colonial Brazil where the fugitive communities stayed were: the plantation zone of Bahia, the mining district of Minas GeraisMinas Gerais
Minas Gerais is one of the 26 states of Brazil, of which it is the second most populous, the third richest, and the fourth largest in area. Minas Gerais is the Brazilian state with the largest number of Presidents of Brazil, the current one, Dilma Rousseff, being one of them. The capital is the...
, and the inaccessible frontier of Alagoas
Alagoas
Alagoas is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil and is situated in the eastern part of the Northeast Region. It borders: Pernambuco ; Sergipe ; Bahia ; and the Atlantic Ocean . It occupies an area of 27,767 km², being slightly larger than Haiti...
, site of Palmares, the largest fugitive community.
Mocambos are Exile Communities established by fugitive Brazilian slaves between the 18th and 19th century.
The purpose of these Settlements was to protect the slaves from the Portuguese opposition, thanks to their hidden location, which was difficult to find for the Punitive Military Expeditions.
Mocambos were a threat to the Economy and the Social Fabric of the Slave Regime, because the Parasitic Economy of these Communities was mostly composed of Theft, Extortion and Raiding.
Though the minority of Communities lived of Agriculture and Arm Trades.
Mocambos were not controlled by the government and because of the high percentage of Brazilian slaves, which incorporated one third of the total Population, the number and the importance of Mocambos was continually increasing.
For this reason Mocambos' inhabitants were executed by Punitive Military Expeditions and the children born in the Mocambos became property of the Leaders of the exterminating Expeditions.
Bahia:A plantation world
Runaway communities flourished in almost all areas of BahiaBahia
Bahia is one of the 26 states of Brazil, and is located in the northeastern part of the country on the Atlantic coast. It is the fourth most populous Brazilian state after São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro, and the fifth-largest in size...
, whose geography aided escape, and the result was a great number of fugitives and mocambos.
In plantation zones, slaves often made up over 60 percent of the inhabitants. They lived in bad
conditions in terms of food and housing and they had to deal with particularly cruel or sadistic masters.
The region of Bahia in which appeared a great quantity of mocambos was the southern towns of Cairù, Camamù and Ilhéus
Ilhéus
Ilhéus is a major city located in the southern coastal region of Bahia, Brazil, 430 km south of Salvador, the state's capital. The city was originally founded in 1534 as Vila de São Jorge dos Ilhéus and is known as one of the most important tourism centers of the northeast of Brazil.The...
. In these towns there was the most part of the production of manioc, the basic
subsistence crop of Brazil.
A second and still unstudied method of slave control and capture in Brazil was the calculated use of Indians as slave catchers and as a counterforce to mocambos and possible slave resorts.