Francisco de Paula Sousa e Melo (5 January 1791 - 16 August 1851) was a Brazilian landowner, nobleman and politician who served as Prime Minister of Brazil.

Uncle of Senator Francisco Antônio de Sousa Queirós.

A friend of priest Diogo Antônio Feijó, he lived for a while at his home in Rio de Janeiro, at Rua São José, no.

He was elected by São Paulo as a deputy in the Portuguese Constituent Cortes of 1820 but was unable to travel across the Atlantic because of poor health.

He was a senator for the Province of São Paulo (from August 1833 to 1854)[1] and Prime Minister of the Empire of Brazil in 1848.