LU ´ IS MIGUEL CAROLIN 1 AND HENRIQUE LEIT ˜ AO 2 NATURAL PHILOSOPHY AND MATHEMATICS IN PORTUGUESE UNIVERSITIES, 1550–1650 * INTRODUCTION Recent historiography of the so-called “Scientific Revolution” of the 16th and 17th century makes clear that no simple characterization of this momentous event can offer a satisfactory description of it. Nevertheless, despite numerous re-appraisals, certain aspects remain central to our comprehension of this complex cultural phenomenon, namely the modifications to the body of knowledge, the role of practitioners, and the epistemological role of natural philosophy and mathematics. This being the case, some distinguished historians of science have tended to see universities as traditional centers of opposition to new forms of knowledge, explaining the conflicts between universities and the new cultural and scientific institutions as the scientific societies as overt evidence of such university conservatism. It is not our intention to analyze the complex relationships which developed be- tween universities and scientific societies in the early modern period; nor do we wish to appraise the role of universities in the “Scientific Revolution” of the 17th century. 3 However, we believe it would be useful to analyze the specific case study of the Portuguese situation, for during that period, specific historical circumstances were in evidence in Portugal which, unlike other European countries, would profoundly determine the Portuguese social and cultural setting. On one hand, Portugal was a small country with a serious demographic problem. The constant demands of mar- itime expansion had to be met which, at their peak, required the control of military and trading matters in an area stretching from the Western coast of Africa to the Southern coast of China. On the other hand, being a catholic country participating in the Counter Reformation movement and experiencing some structural problems with regard to institutions of higher education, it was a country in which the Society of Jesus seems to have played a fundamental and even unique role in education, at all levels throughout Europe. THE JESUITS AND UNIVERSITY TEACHING OF NATURAL PHILOSOPHY One of the main manifestations of Portuguese engagement in the Counter Reforma- tion movement, perceived more particularly from the reign of Jo˜ ao III (1502–1557), in parallel with the establishment of the Inquisition in lands governed by the Portuguese 153 M. Feingold and V. Navarro-Brot´ ons (eds.), Universities and Science in the Early Modern Period, 153–168. C  2006 Springer. Printed in the Netherlands.