Nothing like the insurrections and civil wars in the name of indepen-
dence that convulsed Spanish America occurred in Brazil. When Portu-
guese rebels in 1820 ousted the regency in Lisbon and convoked a liberal
parliament, the new government attempted to tighten the colonial ties
with Brazil, which had weakened now that the royal family lived in Rio
de Janeiro. The British, fearing loss of their own influence over Portugal
and Brazil, advised João VI to return to Europe. In April 1821 he did so,
taking three thousand members of his court but leaving his twenty-three-
year-old son Pedro behind, reputedly advising him to accept the local
throne if the Brazilians demanded independence.

When the Lisbon parliament demanded that Pedro return as well, he
refused. On September 7, 1822, at Ypiranga, in São Paulo, Pedro, after
seeking counsel from members of the Brazilian elite, dramatically threw
his sword to the ground and shouted "Independence or death!" Blood-
shed occurred only in Bahia, where Portuguese troops resisted, but they
were driven off by a small fleet lead by British admiral Lord Cochrane.
On December 1, 1822, Pedro was crowned emperor of Brazil.

Most Brazilians remained unaware of who governed Brazil. Elites
amounted to a tiny proportion of the overall population, which was
made up of African and Brazilian-born blacks and persons of interme-

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