History of Brazil

Cultural Tours / Brazil – During the colonial time, the land of the new colony was donated / distributed in form of so-called sesmarias.

The first sesmaria of Brazil was conceded by Martim Afonso de Sousa, in the future captaincy of São Vicente (actual municiple of Cubatão), to Pero de Góes, on October 10, 1532.

Martim Afonso signed the donation, when he reached with João Ramalho the Piratininga highland, at the end of the Tupiniquins Trail.

During the 16th and 17th century, these first sesmarias of Pero de Góes, Rui and Francisco Pinto and Antônio Rodrigues were continuously acquired by the Jesuits, constituting in 1647 a large property, denominated Fazenda Geral. According to the Brazilian historian Francisco Rodrigues Torres, the Jesuits projected this property with the intention to monopolize the transport on the Cubatão river in order to generate a fixed income from this.

Nowadays, the mountain ranges of these former sesmarias belong to the Itutinga - Pilões section in the Serra do Mar, State Park – History of Brazil / Tours.

See also: History of Brazil