A voz do Parlamento nas Relações Internacionais: a atuação do Legislativo na questão da Ilha da Trindade de 1895-1896

Abstract

This dissertation examines the role of the Brazilian Parliament in the formulation and conduct of foreign policy during the diplomatic incident of Trindade Island (1895-1896). This territory, located more than a thousand kilometers off the Brazilian coast, was occupied by the United Kingdom in January 1895, generating a diplomatic crisis that tested the institutions of the young Republic. The newly inaugurated President Prudente de Morais, the first civilian to govern republican Brazil, already faced the challenges of overcoming the financial and political instability inherited from the Republic of the Sword. In the context of international relations, the undefined nature of republican foreign policy and the Executive's initially hesitant stance toward British occupation provoked vehement criticism from congressmen, leading the Legislature to temporarily assume a leading role in defending national sovereignty. The analysis of parliamentary speeches, minutes of the Foreign Relations Committees, and diplomatic documents revealed legislative action that transcended the formal constitutional limitations imposed by the 1891 Charter. The research analyzes how the legal-institutional framework restricted and, simultaneously, enabled parliamentary action, comparing it with the institutional arrangement of the imperial period. The three chapters address, respectively: the island's history and the legal basis for the Brazilian claim; the parliamentary reaction to the occupation and the diplomatic negotiations that culminated in Portuguese mediation; and the broader international context, including the clash between British imperialism and the growing influence of the Monroe Doctrine in the South Atlantic. The case reveals itself as a microcosm of international transformations of the late nineteenth century, when technology, commerce, and geopolitics intertwined in imperial disputes. It thus becomes evident how the convergence of Legislative efforts enabled the construction of a consensual foreign policy, grounded in the nation's superior interests, establishing Parliament as a decisive agent in achieving national objectives. The incident, which culminated in the recognition of Brazilian sovereignty over the territory in 1896, illustrates that Brazil constitutes a historical-geographical construction in which diplomatic action, supported by an active Legislature, played a fundamental role.