Having specialized in the South American country for most of his academic career, Barman (history, U. of British Columbia) here integrates gender studies into his concerns. He extracts copiously from Isabel's (1846-1921) letters and recollections within the framework of a female life cycle. In addition to showing how women have been shaped by and have lived within cultural, social, and economic structures created by men and predicated on female subordination and exploitation, he uses the princess' life to illuminate the interplay of gender and power in the 19th century. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR.

This is a biography of Isabel Orleans-Braganca, daughter of the last emperor of Brazil. At a time when the voices of women went mostly unheard, Orleans-Braganca was a skilled and vocal politician. She was also a determined abolitionist, committed to peacefully ending slavery in the country that first introduced slavery to America. Thrust into the political spotlight after the death of her two brothers and illness of her father, Orleans-Braganca became acting head of state just as revolution was sweeping the country. She soon found herself in a race to save the constitutional government and free the nation's slaves before a coup d'etat ended her time in power.

Grand Duchess Elena Pavlovna of Russia and Princess Isabel of Brazil were active participants in the struggle to end servile labor in their respective countries. They acted in defiance of political conventions which excluded women from any political activity. Both women were determined to do all in their power to further the cause of emancipation and to determine the terms under which serfs and slaves were emancipated. This book examines the political activities of the two royal women within the context of their respective societies and adopts a comparative approach.

As the elder daughter of an emperor whose wife had presented him with no sons, Isabel stood to inherit the monarchy of Brazil with the passing of Dom Pedro II. On three separate occasions, Isabel was named regent, or head of state, when her father was required to leave the country for extended periods. On each occasion, she served as the dutiful daughter, following her father's instructions to the letter and resisting any attempts at personal aggrandizement. During her third regency, as her father recuperated in Europe, rather than accumulate personal power and oppose the forces of republicanism and abolition, Isabel personally led the struggle to pass the Gold Law of 1888 abolishing slavery throughout Brazil, thus ridding the country of one of the institutions upon which traditional monarchical Brazil was based and speeding the downfall of the monarchy, the monarchy she would inherit, in 1889. Princess Isabel of Brazil examines Isabel's role as an extraordinary woman who had access to material wealth and education and power, in patriarchal nineteenth-century Brazil. Professor Barman looks at how her life was constrained by her subordinate roles as daughter, wife, mother, and even as empress-in-waiting, using the fascinating career of Isabel to examine the interplay of gender and power in the nineteenth century. This new book is an excellent resource for courses biography, women's studies, and Latin American history courses.

In May 1888 the Brazilian parliament passed, and Princess Isabel (acting for her father, Emperor Pedro II) signed, the lei aurea, or Golden Law, providing for the total abolition of slavery. Brazil thereby became the last “civilized nation” to part with slavery as a legal institution. The freeing of slaves in Brazil, as in other countries, may not have fulfilled all the hopes for improvement it engendered, but the final act of abolition is certainly one of the defining landmarks of Brazilian history. The articles presented here represent a broad scope of scholarly inquiry that covers developments across a wide canvas of Brazilian history and accentuates the importance of formal abolition as a watershed in that nation’s development.

From the first encounters between the Portuguese and indigenous peoples in 1500 to the current political turmoil, the history of Brazil is much more complex and dynamic than the usual representations of it as the home of Carnival, soccer, the Amazon, and samba would suggest. This extensively revised and expanded second edition of the best-selling Brazil Reader dives deep into the past and present of a country marked by its geographical vastness and cultural, ethnic, and environmental diversity. Containing over one hundred selections—many of which appear in English for the first time and which range from sermons by Jesuit missionaries and poetry to political speeches and biographical portraits of famous public figures, intellectuals, and artists—this collection presents the lived experience of Brazilians from all social and economic classes, racial backgrounds, genders, and political perspectives over the past half millennium. Whether outlining the legacy of slavery, the roles of women in Brazilian public life, or the importance of political and social movements, The Brazil Reader provides an unparalleled look at Brazil’s history, culture, and politics.

Capturing the scope of this country's rich diversity--with over 100 entries from a wealth of perspectives--"The Brazil Reader" offers a fascinating guide to Brazilian life, culture, and history. 52 photos. Map & illustrations.

In the history of post-colonial Latin America no person has held power so firmly and for so long as did Pedro II as emperor of Brazil. This is the first full-length biography in 60 years, and the first in any language to make close use of Pedro II's diaries and family papers.

Chronicles the first decades of an informal lottery called the jogo do bicho, or animal game, which originated in Rio de Janeiro in 1892, and remains popular in Brazil today.

An engrossing and revolutionary biography of Isabella of Castile, the controversial Queen of Spain who sponsored Christopher Columbus's journey to the New World, established the Spanish Inquisition, and became one of the most influential female rulers in history. In 1474, when most women were almost powerless, twenty-three-year-old Isabella defied a hostile brother and a mercurial husband to seize control of Castile and León. Her subsequent feats were legendary. She ended a twenty-four-generation struggle between Muslims and Christians, forcing North African invaders back over the Mediterranean Sea. She laid the foundation for a unified Spain. She sponsored Columbus’s trip to the Indies and negotiated Spanish control over much of the New World. She also annihilated all who stood against her by establishing a bloody religious Inquisition that would darken Spain’s reputation for centuries. Whether saintly or satanic, no female leader has done more to shape our modern world. Yet history has all but forgotten Isabella’s influence. Using new scholarship, Downey’s luminous biography tells the story of this brilliant, fervent, forgotten woman, the faith that propelled her through life, and the land of ancient conflicts and intrigue she brought under her command.