Illegal slave trade and finance: the activities of José Bernardino de Sá and Bank of Brazil

Abstract

In the first half of the 19th century, the slave trade was intense in the Americas, despite British embargoes. In Brazil, this process was no different, even with the illegality of the trade decreed by the Feijó Law of 1831 and the pressure from the British Navy in the Atlantic. The trade remained active. Slave trade would only effectively be abolished in 1850 with the Eusébio de Queirós Law, which discouraged further Atlantic commerce. This work highlights José Bernardino de Sá, who played a significant role in the Atlantic slave trade in the fifteen years preceding its definitive abolition. It is proposed that his trajectory parallels that of other traffickers of the period, especially regarding enrichment during the illegal slave trafficking period and investments in the financial sector, such as the Bank of Brazil.