| Chapter 1: | Cherished Myths |
|
|
This is a limited free preview of this book. Please buy full access.
Only in 1575, almost a century after their arrival, were the Portuguese able to cross the strip of sea separating the Island of Luanda from dry land. Even if the importance of that moment cannot be underestimated, we must acknowledge that it did not put an end to different forms of African hegemony that were to be protracted at least until the end of the nineteenth century.1 Even prejudicial supporters of the five-century-old Portuguese civilising effort admitted that it was the Septembrist regime (1836–1842) and, more concretely, its key leader Sá da Bandeira that first envisioned a programme of African expansion for Portugal. This was a part of the Septembrist vision of developing the energies and possibilities of Portugal, creating a new kind of empire in place of Brazil. Sá da Bandeira clearly explained this to British diplomats in order to justify his claims on the northern territories of Molembo, Cabinda, and Ambriz. He also provided a useful overall picture of the troubled Portuguese political situation at the time: