In the coming and going of the canoes

letters sent to two captain-majors based at the Gurupá Fortress (1684-1685)

Abstract

In the collection of manuscripts of the Biblioteca da Ajuda, in Lisbon, a well-preserved codex contains the record of the active correspondence of the governor and general captain of the State of Maranhão and Grão-Pará, Francisco de Sá de Meneses (1682-1685). Dated from 1683 to 1685, it was largely destined to the major captain of Maranhão, Baltazar Fernandes, and to a lesser extent to the lieutenant captains of the private captaincies of Cumã (or Tapuitapera) and Caeté, to religious, military and relatives of the governor. Among the recipients of Francisco de Sá de Meneses are also two captains-mores of the Santo Antônio do Gurupá Fortress: André Pinheiro de Lacerda and Gonçalo de Lemos Mascarenhas. In the codex, there are five letters from the governor for both, with dates between January 25, 1684 and March 2, 1685, transcribed at the end of this work. The text that presents them brings brief comments that highlight the potential of this type of source for the study of colonization processes, political communication and administration in the State of Maranhão, at the end of the 17th century.