The first major Crown law restricts but does not end Indigenous enslavement

On 22 April 1500, Pedro Álvares Cabral’s fleet reached the coast of what Portuguese chroniclers called Vera Cruz. The land was not “discovered”: Indigenous peoples already lived across the territory...

On 22 January 1532, Martim Afonso de Sousa established São Vicente, generally identified as the first Portuguese town in Brazil. Colonial settlement tied land occupation to plantation development...

On 29 March 1549, Tomé de Sousa arrived at Porto da Barra with the Crown’s instructions to establish Salvador and the government-general. A centralized colonial administration helped organize...

On 25 March 1559, a royal license authorized mill owners in Brazil to import up to 120 enslaved Africans per mill, subject to duties. This policy made the Crown an active regulator and beneficiary...

On 24 February 1587, the Crown issued legislation describing which Indigenous people could be held captive and under what purported legal conditions. Such rules did not establish meaningful consent or...

On 5 July 1587, Philip II confirmed a license allowing named agents to conduct “rescue” transactions involving enslaved people in Brazil. Colonial records used rescue language for transactions that...

On 21 August 1587, a royal order addressed the location of Indigenous communities near mills and estates. Mission settlements and proximity to colonial enterprises could make Indigenous labor,...

On 11 November 1595, a new law said Indigenous people could be captured only in wars specifically authorized by the Crown, while those captured by other means were to be free. The 1609 law later...

On 26 July 1596, the Crown transferred administration of Indigenous peoples in Brazil to the Jesuits. This measure limited settlers’ direct control in some settings while expanding missionary...