A POLÍTICA ECONÔMICA DE ERVA-MATE PARANAENSE E A GUERRA DA TRÍPLICE ALIANÇA

Abstract

This article aims to analyze the relationship between the provincial yerba mate economy in Paraná and the military aspects of the Paraguayan War, which lasted from December 1864 to March 1870. The study examines Paraná's provincial governors’ reports, sets of laws and decrees from Paraná, minutes from the Council of State, and reports from the War Department. From a theoretical-methodological perspective, the research is based on the parameters of Conceptual History, as proposed by Reinhart Koselleck (2006) in Futuro Passado, and Renewed Political History. Conceptual History, as a specialized method for using sources, focuses on the use of socially and politically relevant terms, analyzing key expressions with similar content. This study applies this approach to understanding how the concepts of Economy, War, and Politics intertwine as social practices, influencing historical discussions and decisions. Koselleck highlights that, since the French Revolution, concepts not only describe facts but also point toward the future, formulating political privileges yet to be achieved. This temporality, present in the analyzed discourses and documents, is essential to understanding how the yerba mate economy drove Paraná’s active involvement in the Paraguayan War. Thus, this study aims to demonstrate that among the motivations leading Paraná to participate in the conflict, the yerba mate economy played a decisive role.