The Records of the Conselho Ultramarino as a Common Archival Heritage: A Contribution to their History ¹

ABSTRACT

Through a study of aspects of the historical trajectory of the archives of the Conselho Ultramarino (Overseas Council) and the Secretaria de Estado da Marinha e dos Domínios Ultramarinos (State Department of Naval Affairs and Overseas Domains), institutions of the central Portuguese colonial administration and the reflexes of this history in the use of the documentation, this article analyses the present-day arrangement of these archives. It also highlights the need to take basic methodological precautions when recovering information present in archives. In exploring the roots of the constitution of the “geographical series” by means of historical research, the author takes as an example the archival series of the Captaincy of São Paulo and emphasizes the variability in the administrative configurations of Colonial Brazil. Informed by the examination of these archives, the article stresses the need to understand the relations existing between documents from various series in order to obtain a clearer insight into events of the past.

Keywords: Overseas Council; history of archives; colonial archives