The Confederados: Forgotten Descendants of the Confederate States of America
Once a year in the Brazilian town of Americana there is a festival known as the Festa Confederada. It is marked with the waving of Confederate flags, the wearing of Confederate uniforms and traditional southern dress (including hoop skirts) and the eating of traditional Southern foods.
Such a festival certainly seems out of place in Brazil, but for the descendants of the Confederados it is an important part of their Confederate-Brazilian Heritage. Funds from the festivities are used to fund the Campo Cemetery run by the Fraternity of American Descendants.
Origins of the Confederados
The Civil War was the bloodiest war ever fought on American soil, and in fact was the deadliest war in American history, killing over 600,000 Americans. Besides the extreme cost of life the war also created great rifts in the American people, some of which still have not completely healed in the over 140 years since the war ended.
In the wake of these turbulent times, with the Civil War ending and Reconstruction beginning, Emperor Dom Pedro II of Brazil offered southerners a chance to come to Brazil and start life anew. Pedro sought to capitalize on their knowledge of modern agricultural techniques, particularly in the area of cotton farming.
Many southerners rejected the Emperor’s offer. General Robert E. Lee, perhaps the most famous and respected of all Confederates, asked southerners to reject the Brazilian’s offer. Despite his please up to as many as 9,000 Southerners packed up and moved south to Brazil.
These people would come to be known as the Confederados. Families packed up what they could, leaving behind their homes and brining all they could to start life anew in another land. Passage to Brazil cost between $20 and $30. Once their Dom Pedro had land set aside which he would sell to these Confederados at only $0.22 an acre.
Up to 60% of the Confederados would eventually return back to the United States of America, but those that stayed worked to keep their southern traditions alive. One of the most important colonies they founded was Americana, in the state of Sao Paulo.
In the beginning the Confederados kept primarily to themselves, keeping their own traditions. In 1868 they founded Campo Cemetery. Being Protestants the Confederados were not allowed at the time to bury their dead in the Catholic cemeteries of the area, and thus they were required to create their own cemetery.
Today Campo Cemetery is of central importance to the Fraternity of American Descendants, an organization made up of descendants of the Confederados founded in 1954. It is the strongest memorial to this unique community in Brazilian History.
The Confederados Today
As time moved on the Confederados eventually began to assimilate more into their new Brazilian home. While the earliest generations had married among themselves, they soon began intermarrying with the rest of Brazilian society and all of the various groups that make up the Brazilian population.
Today only 10% of the population of Americana are related to the founding Confederados. Still they remember strongly their Confederado heritage. In 1954 Confederado descendants from across Brazil created the Fraternity of American Descendants which remains a strong and vibrant community.
The forgotten Confederados and their descendants made headlines in 1972 when Governor Jimmy Carter of Georgia and his wife, Rosalyn visited Americana. Rosalyn Carter’s great-uncle had been one of the original Confederados and the Carters visited his grave at Campo Cemetery on their trip.
Although they have been largely forgotten, the Confederados remain a fascinating part of American and Brazilian history. The community of their descendants thrives to this day.
