ĭuring the Iberian Union (1580–1640), which allowed Portuguese settlers to enter Spanish domains, the territory of Portuguese colonial domains in South America was more than doubled, with both states of Brazil and Maranhão greatly expanding westward. However, captaincies continued existing under both states as regional administrations. In 1621, the northern part of the dominion was detached, becoming a separate entity known as the State of Maranhão. In 1549, the Portuguese Crown appointed Tomé de Sousa as the first governor-general of the vast Portuguese dominion in South America, known as the State of Brazil ( Estado do Brasil).
The captaincies were to be inherited by the holders' descendants, but the Crown retained the power to reacquire them. Each of the holders of these captaincies was referred to as a captain donatary ( capitão donatário). The continental land was divided into captaincies in 1534, generally following lines of latitude, although some followed meridians or diagonal lines.
The first such captaincy was the island of São João, granted in 1504 to Fernão de Loronha. The first administrative divisions of Brazil were the hereditary captaincies ( capitanias hereditárias), stretches of land granted by the Portuguese Crown to noblemen or merchants with a charter to colonize the land. The present states of Brazil trace their history directly to the captaincies established by Portugal following the Treaty of Tordesillas which divided the World between Portugal and Spain.
The States of Brazil, their respective flags, their state capitals, and their largest cities.
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