Bemtevis, cabanos and ligueiros

organization and role of the political elite of Maranhão after the Balaiada (1842-1855)

Abstract

The article aims to analyze the organization and the role of the political elite of Maranhão after the elections in the 19th century, in the period between 1842 and 1855, and also to understand the configuration (and reconfigurations) of political groups in Maranhão at that time. The elections for public offices in the central government were certainly a singular moment that not only mobilized local political groups but also showed their actions, identities and strengths. Therefore, this will be a crucial and recurring point in the paper. The period discussed here represents the period of the (re)constitution of the local parties after the end of the Balaiada and the dissolution of the General Chamber in 1842. It refers, therefore, to the period before the enactment of the Lei dos Círculos (Law of the Circles) in 1855, which changed the rules of the electoral dispute. A special focus is laid on the deputies elected to the General Chamber in Maranhão, and, to a lesser extent, on the senators and provincial deputies. When possible, biographical information from different sources is provided about them and their allies to help understand the broader picture of these political elites and their ties. In order to check the identities and organization of the elites at the provincial level, we used newspapers of the period as source. As additional documentary corpus, we used the Annals of the General Assembly and the Senate of the Empire to confront these characterizations and identifications with their institutional roles.