546 PORTUGUESE AMERICA. 



the possessions of the Portuguese ; they took almost all their for- 

 tresses in the East Indies, and then turned their arms upon Brasil, 

 where they took seven of the captainships, or provinces ; and would 

 have subdued the whole colony, had not their career been stopped by 

 the archbishop, at the head of his monks, and a few scattered forces. 

 The Dutch were, about the year 1654, entirely driven out of Brasil; 

 but their West India company still continuing their pretensions to this 

 country, and harassing the Portuguese at sea, the latter agreed, in 

 1661, to pay the Dutch eight tons of gold, to relinquish their interest 

 in that country ; which was accepted : and the Portuguese have re- 

 mained in peaceable possession of all Brasil from that time, till 

 about the end of the year 1762, when the Spanish governor of 

 Buenos Ayres, hearing of a war between Portugal and Spain, took, 

 after a month's siege, the Portuguese frontier fortress called St. 

 Sacrament : but, by the treaty of peace of the following year, it was 

 restored. 



