São Cristóvão was established by the Portuguese (in a time when Portugal, Spain and the Naples kingdoms were under the rule of Philip II of Spain) as one of the first colonization attempts in Sergipe, which makes the city the fourth oldest one in Brazil. In 1590 the Portuguese sent Cristóvão de Barros to both subjugate the region to colonial rule and establish a safe trading port between Salvador and Pernambuco. De Barros quickly and violently defeated the local population, which consisted of people of mixed Tupinambá and French heritage who maintained a trade in Brazilwood.