The first Bank of Brazil was founded in 1808 and is usually referred to as one of the most relevant initiatives put forward by the government of D. João VI when the Portuguese court established the capital of the empire in Rio de Janeiro. However, our knowledge of the history of this institution, whose creation was conceived as a key element of the economic and financial policies to be implemented during the stay of the Portuguese court in Brazil, is still rather incomplete. It is the aim of this article to explain the main reasons for both the creation and the failure of the Bank of Brazil. The article provides a critical survey of the main secondary literature available on the history of the Bank, while also exploring and revealing unknown and less studied primary sources that shed new light into the activities and scope of the first Bank of Brazil.
Bank of Brazil; D. João VI; Transfer of the Portuguese court to Brazil
