"Then come what may": For a rediscussion on the Panther Affair and on Rio Branco's foreign policy

Abstract

The Panther Affair was an incident involving Brazil and Germany that had great international influence in its day, being marked in the history of Brazilian foreign policy as an episode of imperialist aggression against Brazil and as the moment that marks a rapprochement between Brazil and the United States. We believe, however, that a renewed discussion of the Panther Affair allows a fresh examination of the dynamics of imperialism from a peripheral look and a different understanding of other ideas about the nation that left its mark on the ideas of Rio Branco on foreign policy.