A ocupação do Ambriz (1855): Geografia e diplomacia de uma derrota inglesa

Resumo

Ambriz is situated north of Luanda and in a region where, according to the treaties then in force, Britain did not recognize any kind of Portuguese sovereignty. Nonetheless, in 1855, Portuguese troops occupied Ambriz, installing administrative and fiscal structures that limited free trade from and to the interior. After presenting several claims, the British Government eventually accepted the occupation. It was a surprising decision, bearing in mind that one of the main goals of British policy in Africa was to guarantee that the coast would remain, as much as possible, open to British trade. The present article, based on Foreign Office documentation, tries to show how this unexpected British attitude derives from a set of events related to
the determination of the latitude of Ambriz.