Fontes do direito colonial e a inquisição no Ceará: uma análise dos processos de bigamia (1774-1800)

Abstract

The issue of how, in fact, the legal structure worked in the Brazilian territory of the colonial period is complex, and there are still many questions to be answered. The objective of this research is to analyze which were the sources of law linked to the inquisitorial action in Brazil and how they manifested themselves in the legal processes regarding the crime of bigamy in the Captaincy of Ceará, from 1774-1800. To achieve this goal, four cases of bigamy related to Ceará were analyzed, referring to five different defendants during the period. Mapping the sources of law expressed or identifiable for analysis (using Atlas.ti software), empirical research was carried out based on these documents and on the Regiment of the Holy Office of 1774. These data, in turn, were cross-referenced with information from books (both contemporary and from the period), as well as articles, theses and other current scientific works on the subject. In an initial chapter, the methodological assumptions are explained. Then, the context of the Captaincy of Ceará in various spheres (territory; people and institutions; and conflicts) is discussed in order to analyze the position of the region before the Portuguese Empire and what could be understood about its peripheral character. Then, in the following chapter, this research deals with the Regiment of 1774, its context of elaboration and the main arguments, while mapping the sources of law contained in the norm. The concept of marriage of the Council of Trent and the crime of bigamy in its aspects of prediction, conflict of competence and procedure were also discussed. Finally, the empirical study of the designated legal procedures was addressed, briefly narrating the cases, mapping their sources and considering the legal peculiarities of each case. This research analyzed citations from sources found such as: the Regiment, the Styles of the Holy Office; the Council of Trent; General Canon Law; the Constitutions of the Archbishopric of Bahia and the Laws of the Kingdom, among others. Despite this, the analysis showed a considerable lack of sources in procedural documents on which greater legal grounds were expected, such as the decisions of the Holy Office and the Prosecutor's Libel. Also, in the documents coming from Ceará itself, it is noted that there were few references to sources of law and it was not possible to specify whether the local officials had actual access to the Regiment. In spite of that, this research shows that the Inquisition was indeed present in Ceará within the logic of its functioning.