The Battle of Maps: Clash of Territorialities and Border Cartographies in the Guianas (19th and 20th Centuries)

Abstract

This paper presents the findings of a case study on the Anglo-Brazilian conflict over the territory located on the current border between Guyana and Brazil (1904), which had previously been marred by disputes between Great Britain and Venezuela (1897). It analyzes the discourses and cartographic narratives presented in arbitration tribunals, exploring the descriptions and interpretations of explorations, maps, and trajectories. From a diachronic perspective, it focuses on the political, diplomatic, and military arguments that surrounded the establishment and controversy of these tribunals while highlighting a history of remoteness in border cartographies and territorial conflicts in the Guianas. The study relies on primary sources to investigate arguments related to indigenous communities inhabiting the disputed areas, the global cartographic hunt for evidence, and the key figures involved in the conflict. This case is presented as an important chapter in the evolution of scientific cartography, not only within the nations involved but also within the European empires that retained territories in the Guianas. The conclusions of the study open up discussions about arbitrations and their attempts to create and alter cartographic discourses, shedding light on the marginalization of the presence and knowledge of traditional communities, and the. It underscores the importance of examining these disputes and their communication channels, including the material produced and compiled with inherent biases. Lastly, the article addresses the cartographic anxieties that arose from boundary disputes in the Americas, particularly within an approach of studying clashes of territorialities amid national efforts to define the boundaries of the nations involved in the context of inherited colonial lines.