Memory Symbols
parades, festivities and celebrations honoring the return of combatants
Keywords:
War of the Triple Alliance, Celebrations, MemoryAbstract
Traditions are invented in a process based on the formalization and ritualization of the past using both repetition and imposition. They can also be explained as a set of practices governed by inflicted or accepted rules that can be ritualistic or symbolic. These rules are created to instill values and norms with a view towards establishing a certain continuity with specific moments in history. This article intends to provide a review of various celebrations that took place at the Court to honor the return of combatants fighting during the War of the Triple Alliance. It correlates the various movements occurring in Brazil at the time, both grassroots and government-led, with acts of rememorizing but also of neglecting and forgetfulness. It also reflects on the extent of the crisis affecting the Monarchy, as well as the attempt to build a repertoire of ritualistic and symbolic narratives encompassing the social and historical context of Brazil in the years following the events of 1870.