BETWEEN THE CATILINE ORATIONS AND THE BRAVE INDIANS: A historiographical debate

Abstract

Abstract: The text reflects on the controversy that involved the figures of historians Francisco Adolfo de Varnhagen and João Francisco Lisboa, which revolved around the issue of indigenous slavery. The discussion, initiated by the journalist and historian from Maranhão in the Note C of the Jornal de Tímon (1858), can be read from a dispute over styles of writing history in the Brazil of the 19th century. Varnhagen’s “answer” appeared only in 1867, in the booklet The Brave Indians and Mr. Lisboa, in which he defended himself against censorship and offered some elements to analyze the historian’s craft and the forms of historiography of that period.

Keywords: Varnhagen. Lisboa. 19^th century Brazilian historiography.