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Kaspar
van Baerle (15841648)
Rerum per Octennium in Brasilia (History
of Events During Eight Years in Brazil)
1647 (frontispiece)
Courtesy of the Fundação Biblioteca Nacional,
Brazil
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Rerum
per Octennium in Brasilia
1647
For
much of the first half of the seventeenth century,
the Dutch West India Company attempted to wrest
what is now Brazil away from the Portuguese, with
limited success. Dutch holdings in South America
reached their peak under Count Johan Maurits (16041679),
who was appointed Governor-General of Dutch Brazil
in 1636 and was in power from 1637 to 1644. Under
Maurits, the Dutch remained in possession of the
Brazilian coast for some distance to the northwest,
and to the south of their capital, Recife, on
the easternmost 'bump' of Brazil.
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Kaspar
van Baerle (15841648)
Rerum per Octennium in Brasilia (History
of Events During Eight Years in Brazil)
1647
Courtesy of the Fundação Biblioteca Nacional,
Brazil
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When
he returned to Europe, Maurits commissioned a
book about his Brazilian government, and chose
Dutch poet Kaspar van Baerle (15841648)
to write it. Baerle (who wrote in Latin under
the signature 'Barlaeus', and is known to Brazilians
today as 'Barleu') was highly regarded for his
Latin poetry, although this rare book is now his
most famous work. It was lavishly producedsome
copies were embossed in goldand all but
eight of the much-admired plates are signed by
Frans Post (16121680), the renowned painter
who accompanied Maurits to Brazil. The volume
on display is one of the few that were hand-coloured
at the time of publication.
The
Dutch did not retain their colony in Brazil after
Maurits retired. They lost more territory to the
Portuguese with each succeeding year, until, by
the end of 1653, they had little left but Recife,
and were besieged in all directions. They renounced
all their holdings on 26 January, 1654.
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