Chica da Silva: history, myths and death

Chica da Silva is an interesting historical figure in Brazil who was the target of much speculation throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Daughter of a white Portuguese and a slave, Chica, who was also a slave, conquered her manumission and she was marked by having a relationship with one of the richest men in Brazil during the mining phase. Her relationship influence guaranteed her status and social ascension in a slave society and openly racist.

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Birth

Historians are not sure what year Francisca da Silva de Oliveira, better known as Chica da Silva, was born. Studies indicate that she was born sometime between 1731 and 1735, in Arraial do Milho Verde, current town of Serro, in the interior of Minas Gerais. Chica da Silva was the daughter of a Portuguese man and an African slave.

her father was called Antônio Caetano de Sá, and her mother, Maria da Costa (“da Costa” refers to Maria's place of origin, Costa da Mina, on the African continent). Chica's father did not grant his daughter manumission and sold her to a doctor who resided in Arraial do Tijuco, the current city of Diamantina.

Chica da Silva was portrayed in a hit movie from 1976 called “Xica da Silva”.[1]

This doctor was called Manuel Pires Sardine and ended up being the father of Chica da Silva's first child. Sexual abuse committed by white Portuguese against their female slaves was common in that period and, thus, Chica gave birth to her first child, named Simão Pires Sardine. Manuel did not register Simão as his son, but placed him in his will.

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Relationship with João Fernandes

In 1753, the diamond contractor from the city of Diamantina, João Fernandes de Oliveira, bought Chica da Silva from Manuel, paying her the value of 800 milreis. Two months after being bought by João Fernandes, Chica was manumitted, and the two entered into a public relationship but never officially married.

For almost two decades, Chica da Silva had a relationship with one of the richest men in the entire colony. Chica and João's relationship lasted until 1770 and, during this period, the couple had a total of thirteen children. Chica da Silva spent most of her relationship with João pregnant. Still, she managed to enjoy the prestige that her husband's wealth provided.

Chica da Silva lived in Diamantina, one of the main cities in Minas Gerais during the mining period.[2]

Chica da Silva tried to look for insert yourself in social circles of the time and, therefore, had many houses and a great number of slaves. Chica da Silva also joined four religious brotherhoods – something important for a woman at that time. Her adhesion to these associations happened through donations.

Chica da Silva and João Fernandes had a stable relationship until 1770. That year, João Fernandes' father died and a testamentary dispute made him decide to return to Portugal. There he remained until his death, around 1776.

Chica da Silva as a mother

As mentioned, Chica da Silva had thirteen children with João Fernandes: four men and nine women. From the relationship with Manuel Pires Sardinha, she had only one child, who, it is believed, occupied important functions in his adulthood.

Chica da Silva and João Fernandes spared no effort to educate their children. The four children were educated in Coimbra, Portugal, and Chica's daughters were educated in convents in the Diamantina region. After João Fernandes returned to Portugal, Chica received numerous goods from her partner, which allowed her to raise her daughters well, in addition to ensuring a comfortable life.

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Myths about Chica da Silva

Chica da Silva's story is shrouded in a series of myths and prejudices. The erroneous views about Chica are the result of the racism of Brazilian society, which it was looking for (and still seeks) to disqualify a black woman who rose socially and was one of the richest of her era.

The first work that sought to reconstruct Chica da Silva's life was carried out by the lawyer Joaquim Felicio dos Santos, in a book called “MemoirsofDistrictdiamond”. Historians claim that the work of Joaquim Felício was a reconstruction of the stories that were told orally in the region of Diamantina and had no basis in sources.

Joaquim Felício helped to consolidate Chica's image as a frivolous, cruel, lascivious woman who liked to show off her wealth. The lawyer also referred to Chica da Silva as a woman with “gross features, tall, stout, her head shaved and covered with a hair curled in curls […]; she had no grace, she had no beauty, she had no spirit, she had no education, in short, she had no attraction, which could justify a strong passion.”|1|

Chica da Silva has also always been seen as a lusty woman who used sex as a weapon to achieve what she craved. Historians, however, dispute this view. and classify it as myth. Chica's vision of lust is part of a Brazilian social construction that sexualizes black women to the extreme.

The big question asked by those who study Chica da Silva is: how a woman who had thirteen children in seventeen years could be lecherous? Based on this, historians have come to the conclusion that Chica da Silva was a conventional woman at her time, who dedicated her life to giving her children a good education.

Chica da Silva was buried in the Church of São Francisco de Assis, in Diamantina.[2]

The insertion of Chica da Silva in the aristocratic circles of the mining region was not the result of a racially democratic society, but it was, in large part, influenced by the wealth of Chica da Silva. Still, Chica had to face challenges to be socially accepted in the region of Diamantina.

The mestizo children she had with João Fernandes, for example, had little influential people as godparents – a clear indication of the racism that surrounded Chica's life. Chica's wealth, therefore, guaranteed her privileges, but there were still restrictions, especially among those who were extremely wealthy.

Read too: The representation of blacks in Brazilian literature

Death

Chica da Silva died on February 15, 1796. Her causes of death are unknown. Thanks to Chica's wealth, she was buried in tomb 16 of the Church of St. Francis of Assisi. Only rich white people managed to be buried in places like this, which makes it very clear how Chica's money was important for her to be socially accepted.

Chica da Silva in popular culture

Actress Taís Araújo became famous for playing Chica da Silva in the soap opera produced by Manchete in the 1990s.[3]

Chica da Silva is a historical character who spent most of the 19th and 20th centuries unnoticed. The appearance of this character in cinema through a film of 1976 and a novel 1996 of the extinct TV Manchete contributed to popularize it. Both productions were called "xica da Silva”. Historians, however, suggest that these productions ended up contributing to creating a negative and stereotyped image of Chica da Silva.

Chica da Silva was a woman who sought to socially integrate with the Minas Gerais elite in conventional ways. She had houses and slaves (and only manumitted one in her life). She took care of her children and tried to give them the best education possible, trying to integrate herself into Catholic circles in Minas Gerais.

Grades

|1| SANTOS, Joaquim Felício dos. Memories of the diamond district of the Serro Frio region. To access, click on here [adapted].

Image credits:

[1] Reproduction

[2] Luis War and Shutterstock

[3] Ron Adar and Shutterstock

By Daniel Neves Silva 

Graduated in History