Guanabara Bay’s defense in the early 18th century: the resistance episode at Morro de São Bento

Abstract

In the beginning of the 18th century, precisely on the morning of September 12, 1711, Rio de Janeiro suffered what we might call, in an imprecise way, its third great attempt of invasion by the French. This attack was led by the noble Briton René Du Guay-Trouin who managed to break through the defenses at the entrance of Guanabara Bay by carrying out an occupation on Rio de Janeiro that lasted until November 13 of that same year. This paper intends to briefly reinterpret the role of São Bento Monastery in the episode of the invasion perpetrated by Du Guay-Trouin. Our aim is to show that, in addition to its religious activities, the Monastery took an important part on the effective defense of the city of Rio de Janeiro during the 18th century.