“Spectacle of Nature”1: Natural History serving the interests of Portuguese Crown

(1770-1808).
Guilherme de Souza Maciel
(IFMG/UFMG)

This text presents preliminary reflections about my doctoring research, yet in

initial stage, which main aim is: to study how Portuguese Crown, in the context of its
enlightened reformism, promoted a scientific development politic, particularly in the
field of Natural History, aiming to overcome the economic and cultural delay of
Portuguese Empire in relation to other European countries.
In an attempt for adapting itself to the revolutionary ambient of 18th century, the
Portuguese Crown promoted reforms inspired in the Enlightenment movement, but
maintaining some traits of Ancien Régime2. This conjunct of reforms was realized
during the government of D. José I (1750-1777), D. Maria I (1777-1816) and D. João
VI (1816-1826)3. In this conjunct, the overcoming of Portuguese cultural and economic
delay was aimed through actions promoted by “marquês de Pombal” in educational area
– in the case of the Coimbra University reform (1770-1772); and also through a more
pragmatic actuation on colonies exploitation and on ample diffusion of scientific
knowledge (especially in the area of natural history): as it occurred in situations like the
creation of the Royal Science Academy of Lisbon (1779) and of the Literary House of
Arco do Cego (1799).

1
The expression “Spectacle of Nature” is the title of one of the most important writings of Christian
scientific thought from Enlightenment period. Written by the French Noël-Antoine Pluche – known as
abbé Pluche (1688-1761) – and published in 1732, the piece Le Spetacle de la Nature, or Entretetiens sur
lês particularités de l’Histoire naturelle qui ont paru les plus propes à rendre les jeunes gens curieux et à
leur former l’esprit, relates the new conquests of 18th Natural Philosophy to the presupposes of Theology
integrating Nature, Man and God. CALAFATE, Pedro. Ciência e religião. In: ______ (Org.) História do
pensamento filosófico português. Lisboa: Editorial Caminho, 2001, v. 3, pp. 308-309.
2
The defense and the strengthening of central power in face to other spheres of power, understanding the
temporal as something independent from any other power and sovereign in its sphere; the usage of
concepts and ideas which came from scholastic corporatism in parallel to enlightened people and modern
natural right to provide a basement for absolutism and regally as a strategy applied to politic competition.
In addition to that: the maintenance of social differentiation according to the voguish distinctions settled
by the establishment. The different access to knowledge (on birth, on owning and on gender), in the sense
that different social groups had access to distinct types and levels of knowledge: nobles and literate elite
could go to university, while the absolute majority of population (mechanic workers and/or rustics) were
supposed to receive only “the instructions from the parish priest”, in other words, the oral explanation of
catechism, remaining on the limit of oral culture and not reaching the scholar culture. MARTINS, João
Paulo. Política e História no Reformismo Ilustrado pombalino (1750-1777). Belo Horizonte:
Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais. Dissertação de Mestrado em História, 2008. p. 165.
FERNANDES, Rogério. Os caminhos do ABC: sociedade portuguesa e ensino de primeiras letras. Porto:
Porto Editora, 1994. p. 69-114.
3
As matter of fact, D. João VI became regent from 1792 on, the mental disturbs of his mother, D. Maria
I.
 The creation and the actions of those three institutions (the reformed Coimbra
University and its new Philosophy Faculty4, the Royal Science Academy of Lisbon, and
the Literary House of Arco do Cego) are understood as the central point of portuguese
enlightened reformism proposal. They were created to promote scientific development
in Portugal during the final decades of 18th century and the beginning of 19th century.
The development of studies and researches and the diffusion of scientific
thought about natural history have had fundamental importance to concretization of
portuguese speculative adventure on its colonies. The development of disciplinary fields
focused on the study of nature as philosophical matter based on rational scientific
method had the aim of providing a kind of knowledge which is applied to utilitarian
purposes and is inserted in the terms of rediscovering the New World. The knowledge
about colonial Portuguese empire was essentially related to the control applied over its
nature5. For this task to be done, the State should assimilate the enlightened knowledge
turning its determinations applicable into a practical point of view. It would also be
necessary to promote a major articulation among the men of letters and the Royal
Power, offering, this way, the objective conditions to support the processes of
cultural/scientific creation and economic transformation.
The creation of Philosophy Faculty was the first step in that direction: focus on
the field of Natural Sciences, based on scientific rationalism of 18th century, and aiming
to overcome the superstitious and culturally archaic character of Portuguese people. Its
actuation aimed, at first moment, the development of formative and speculative
researches; what promoted the education of a whole generation of luso-brazilian
naturalists through classes and researches developed on its laboratories, studies,
museums and gardens.

4
Among the several modifications occurred on superior courses of Coimbra University, it have been
created the Philosophy Faculty, which course had major part of content focused on teaching the Natural
Sciences and the Physical-Chemical Sciences. The content which was taught on those disciplines were
considered as not belonging to what used to be defined as Natural Philosophy, or in other words, the
knowledge about the several aspects of Nature. The Philosophy course used to last four years and it was
composed by four disciplines, being each of them coursed in each year: Rational and Moral Philosophy,
Natural History, Experimental Physics and Chemistry. CARVALHO, Rômulo de. A História Natural em
Portugal no Século XVIII. Instituto de Cultura e Língua Portuguesa. Divisão de Publicações. Lisboa,
1987. pp. 40-41.
5
MUNTREAL FILHO, Oswaldo. O Liberalismo num outro Ocidente: política colonial, ideias fisiocratas
e reformismo mercantilista. In: PEIXOTO, Antônio Carlos et. al. O Liberalismo no Brasil Imperial:
origens, conceitos e prática. Rio de Janeiro: Revan-UERJ, 2001. p. 38.
 The Royal Science Academy of Lisbon and the Literary House of Arco do Cego
have developed more practical actions discovering the colonial world through
philosophical trips6, producing texts about the natural constitution of oversee territories,
or diffusing the knowledge from the field of natural history in utilitarian perspective
with the aim of contributing to the scientific and economic development of the country.
These three institutions represented the implantation of a space for reflexive
cultural creation and practical actions. Nature appropriation was not only a simple result
of the impact caused by doctrines or philosophical/economic schools of thought which
had arrived to Portugal at that moment, but also an alternative and a discursive practice
formulated by the portuguese enlightened absolutism itself trying to equalize the
flowing questions: a) how to promote metropolitan commercial prosperity inside the
mercantilist perspective? b) how to quit portuguese cultural isolation from European
high culture and from modern science? In this sense, natural history had been
considered, by excellence, the ideal field of scientific knowledge for promoting the
material progress of the kingdom e of its dominium.
The plan of portuguese incursion on the field of sciences, and as well its
practical activities, were realized by a body of regal employees; including on this
“body” the scientists themselves. This way, the crown was supposed to delimitate what
was or not science; and particularly in what concerns to natural history, the luso-
brazilian bureaucratic elite was supposed to realize any required task: the appropriation
of natural world (particularly the colonies), and the act of writing its history through the
experimentation and the exploration of usages and properties of nature.
Inside European political conjuncture at the end of 18th century, Portugal
desired to represent itself in front of other countries by displaying an ideologically
defined posture guided at the same time by principles of absolutism and enlightenment7.
So, looking for a rational and appropriate usage of nature could mean an important
difference on particular competition among enlightened absolutist countries or despotic-
enlightened countries like Spain, Italy, Greek and Russia. It would also mean an
economic reaction to dynastic and militarily hegemonic potential countries like France,

6
The designation “philosophical” used to qualify the referenced trips is related to the same reason
adopted to name the university department created by the “Pombal” reform as Philosophy Faculty. Its
objectives were a philosophical attitude: observe, analyze and interpret the nature on its several
dominium. CARVALHO, Rômulo de. op. cit., p. 86.
7
MUNTREAL FILHO, Oswaldo. O Liberalismo num outro Ocidente: política colonial, ideias fisiocratas
e reformismo mercantilista. In: PEIXOTO, Antônio Carlos et. al. op. cit., p. 60.
England, Austria-Hungary and Netherlands8. As the State was the great promoter of the
initiatives, these paths were conveniently stepped by the literate luso-brazilian elite:
contributing to spread the attributions of the State and its new directions to a new model
of state activity with enlightened character, but without changing the despotic-absolutist
nature of portuguese regal power.
It interests us to analyze the scientific culture developed in Portugal on the ambit
of its enlightened reformism; taking in account the fact that a whole generation of luso-
brazilians graduated at reformed Coimbra University and had acted on the Royal
Science Academy of Lisbon and/or at the Literary House of Arco do Cego. Some of
those men went back to Brazil and actively participated on political and intellectual
Brazilian life during the beginning of 19th century. According to Maria Odila Leite Silva
Dias, the main characteristics which formed the thought of that literate generation
remained through the 19th century on Brazil and propitiated reflexes on national
progressive and modernizing manifestations during the Empire9. According to this we
can deduce that, by analysis and comprehension about the development and the place
reached by the natural history on the focused scientific institutions and on portuguese
politics during the end of 18th century and beginning of 19th century, this research also
contributes to the comprehension of the appropriation manners of this enlightened
thought by luso-brazilians who graduated in Portugal and had stand out on Brazilian
politics and culture during the 19th century.
So, aiming to contribute for a better comprehension of the political and
intellectual limits of Portuguese enlightened reformism, the investigation lines which
guide my research are: to analyze how the scientific culture linked to natural history
area was appropriated and developed by Portuguese State on the focused period. I
intend to reflect about the development of this field of knowledge by the light of politic,
social and cultural shock of forces which had place at the educational institutions, and
as well on Portuguese researches and scientific divulgations between the end of 18th
century and the beginning of 19th century.

8
Ibidem, p. 62.
9
DIAS, Maria Odila Leite Silva. Aspectos da ilustração no Brasil. In: ______. A interiorização da
metrópole e outros estudos. São Paulo: Alameda, 2005. p. 39.