Paraíba

Paraíba (/ˌpærəˈiːbə/ PARR-ə-EE-bə, Brazilian Portuguese: [paɾaˈibɐ] ^ⓘ; Tupinambá: pa'ra a'íba) is a state of Brazil. It is located in the Brazilian Northeast, and it is bordered by Rio Grande do Norte to the north, Ceará to the west, Pernambuco to the south and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Paraíba is the third most densely populated state of the Northeast; João Pessoa, the coastal state capital, and Campina Grande, in the countryside, rank among the fifteen largest municipalities in the Northeast of Brazil. The state is home to 1.9% of the Brazilian population and produces 0.9% of the Brazilian GDP and it is divided into 223 municipalities.

Paraíba is mostly populated along the Atlantic coast, which extends as far as Ponta do Seixas, the easternmost point of the mainland Americas. The state is a tourist and industrial hotspot; it is known for its cultural heritage, amenable climate and geographical features, ranging from the seaside beaches to the Borborema Plateau. It is named after the Paraíba river.

Notable writers and poets from Paraíba include Augusto dos Anjos, José Américo de Almeida, José Lins do Rego, Ariano Suassuna and Pedro Américo, the last being also known for his historical paintings.

Before Europeans arrived in Brazil, the territory that is now the state of Paraíba was home to numerous indigenous tribes. Between the coast and the Borborema Plateau, the main indigenous group was the Potiguara (part of the larger Tupi group), who lived along the Paraíba do Norte river. The Kiriri and Ariús groups, meanwhile, lived further to the west, occupying the region between the Borborema Plateau and the sertão.

In 1500, the Portuguese explorer Pedro Álvares Cabral reached the northeastern coast of Brazil and claimed the territory of Brazil for the Portuguese Empire as set out in the Treaty of Tordesillas. It was not until 1534, however, that colonization began, spurred on by the increasing French presence in the Northeast. In that same year, the King of Portugal, John III, divided Brazil into fifteen captaincies. Most of what is now the state of Paraíba became part of the Captaincy of Itamaracá, which comprised a thin band of area stretching from the Tordesillas line at the far western extremity to the Ponta do Seixas, the easternmost point of Brazil. The remaining portions of the state fell under the neighboring captaincies of Rio Grande to the north and Pernambuco to the south. Itamaracá, in contrast to Pernambuco, continued to be troubled by French piracy, especially of wood, animal skins, and amber.

Convents, churches, and sugar mills began to sprout up in the captaincy as the colonial population grew. Where once the Portuguese had had a relatively conciliatory relationship with the Tupi people, due in part to their usefulness as allies against other European powers (the French, Dutch, and Spanish), as well as to other hostile indigenous peoples, the growth of the colonies sparked tensions. The principal reasons for heightened tensions were the encroachment of settlers on indigenous territory, driven by the establishment of sugarcane plantations and the increasing nutritional needs of a larger population; the new compulsory labor relations imposed by the Portuguese, which implied the abandonment of the indigenous agricultural production system, essential for the survival of the villages; and the fact that though they were banned from attacking Portuguese settlements, their own villages were subject to attacks from settlers searching for slave labor. Eventually, the tensions came to a head when the Potiguara people, urged on by the French, gathered around 2,000 tribesmen from Paraíba and Rio Grande and attacked the Tracunhaém plantation in 1574, killing all residents. The event had powerful reverberations in Lisbon, leading to King Henry creating the Royal Captaincy of Paraíba, which was subordinate directly to the Portuguese Crown. The "Tragedy of Tracunhaém" also served as the trigger for the Potiguara War, which lasted from 1574 to 1599.

Though it was officially created in 1574, the Captaincy of Paraíba was only made reality eleven years after the fact. In 1572, Luís de Brito was named the governor-general of the country and the governor of the northern captaincies, including Itamaracá. He received from the King the order to punish those responsible for the Tracunhaém attack and create a new city to serve as the governor's seat. Brito's expedition, as well as the next three attempts, ended in failure. Finally, in 1584, the new governor-general, Manuel Teles Barreto, mounted a successful expedition with the help of the captain-major of the captaincy, Frutuoso Barbosa, and the fleet of Admiral D. Diogo Flores de Valdés. At the time, eastern Paraíba was inhabited by the Potiguara people and their rivals, the Tabajaras, who had moved there from the central region following a period of drought. The Tabajara joined the Portuguese and together they chased the Potiguara from the area, thereby completing their original mission. Having now conquered Paraíba, the colonists established the first Royal City in Brazil under the Philippine Dynasty in 1585, named "Filipeia de Nossa Senhora das Neves" (today the capital of Paraíba, João Pessoa). Additionally, to repel French invaders, they constructed the Forte de São Tiago on the edge of the Paraíba do Norte river.

Owing to its lucrative sugarcane industry, the Captaincy of Paraíba proved to be one of the most economically successful regions in Portuguese America, alongside Pernambuco and Bahia. Because of this, the Dutch were interested in claiming the Northeast region and first attempted to do so in 1624 by seizing the then-capital city of Brazil, Salvador, in Bahia. Following their expulsion from Salvador, the Dutch made their first appearance on Paraíban territory on June 20, 1625, when they arrived in the Bay of Traição to treat their sick and bury their dead. The Dutch Admiral, Boudewijn Hendricksz, quickly formed an alliance with the Potiguaras, promising them protection in return for military support against the Portuguese. The governor of Paraíba, Antônio de Albuquerque, sent troops to drive away the invaders. Seven companies of men from the Captaincy of Paraíba, the Captaincy of Pernambuco, the Captaincy of Rio Grande, and from indigenous tribes succeeded in defeating the Dutch on August 1, at least for the time being. Hendricksz was able to escape, fleeing to Puerto Rico. During the battle, however, the Potiguaras suffered heavy losses of 600 to a thousand dead.