During independence, Grão-Pará mobilized itself to expel reactionary forces which tried to reintegrate Brazil into the
Portuguese Empire. Until 1822 Grão-Pará had been a separate
viceroyalty from Brazil, reporting itself directly to Portugal; after Brazilian independence Grão-Pará decided to join Brazil. In the
struggle for independence, which dragged on for several years, the
canon and journalist , the Vinagre brothers and the farmer stood out. Several lodges of
fugitive slaves formed, and there were frequent military rebellions. Once the fight for independence ended and a provincial government named by the Brazilian Emperor was installed, the local leaders were marginalized from power. In July 1831 – a few months after the abdication of Emperor
Pedro I of Brazil at Rio de Janeiro – a rebellion in the military garrison of
Belém do Pará broke out, and Batista Campos was imprisoned as one of the implicated leaders. The indignation of the poor grew, and in 1833 already there was talk of converting Brazil into a federation. The provincial president, , unleashed a repressive political wave, in an attempt to contain the separatists. The climax was reached in 1834, when Batista Campos published a letter from the
Bishop of Pará, , criticizing various politicians from the province. For not having permission from the provincial government, Campos was persecuted, and sought refuge on the
fazenda of his friend Clemente Malcher. Meeting the Vinagre brothers (Manuel Vinagre, Francisco Pedro Vinagre, and Antônio Vinagre) and the India-rubber collector and journalist they joined a contingent of rebels on Malcher's plantation. Before being attacked by government forces, they abandoned the plantation. Nevertheless, on November 3, troops managed to kill Manuel Vinagre and hold Malcher and other rebels. Batista Campos died on the last day of the year, apparently because of an infection caused by a cut he suffered while shaving. ==The movement==