Tio Alípio

Tio Alípio was an African man who was brought to Brazil in chains to work at the Engenho Pantaleão sugar mill in Santo Amaro da Purificação, Bahia. According to historical accounts preserved by Mestre Cobrinha Verde, he was "the most famous master in Santo Amaro".

His mother came from Africa on a slave ship that departed from the Port of São Jorge da Mina in Dahomey (present-day Benin). Alípio was enslaved while still young by a wealthy family. At the plantation, he endured the sufferings of slavery until abolition in 1888.

Beyond his skill as a capoeirista, Alípio was a Babalaô—a spiritual priest in the Candomblé tradition. This dual role as martial arts teacher and spiritual leader was common among African capoeira masters, who transmitted both fighting techniques and religious practices as an integrated cultural system.

After the Lei Áurea (Golden Law) abolished slavery in May 1888, Alípio moved to Trapiche de Baixo, the poorest neighborhood of Santo Amaro. There he continued to practice and teach capoeira, though the art remained criminalized under the 1890 Penal Code.

His most famous student was the young Manoel Henrique Pereira, later known as Besouro Mangangá. Besouro came to study under Alípio around 1908, when he was about thirteen years old. The old African taught him "os mistérios da capoeira, do jogo, das facas e das boas orações" (the mysteries of capoeira, of the game, of knives and of good prayers) in the sugarcane fields around the plantation. The teaching took place in secrecy, as being caught meant severe punishment.

The significance of Tio Alípio extends beyond his own life. He represents the direct transmission of African martial and spiritual traditions to Brazilian soil. Through his student Besouro, and Besouro's student Cobrinha Verde, his teachings eventually reached Mestre João Grande and Mestre João Pequeno—creating a lineage that connects living masters to the era of slavery.

Note: Some sources claim Alípio was "sentenced to death" for teaching capoeira. This has not been verified in any primary sources and may be a later embellishment. What is documented is that during this period, capoeira practitioners faced severe legal penalties including imprisonment and internal exile.