History
» Colonization
A History built by many peoples
Upon their arrival on Rio de Janeiro’s
shores in 1502, the Portuguese would have to face the same adversaries
they would come up against on several other occasions during
the colonial period: the French. These were corsairs after Brazilwood,
found in abundance in the area where the city of Cabo Frio stands
today.
In search of Brazilwood and other riches, ships from Spain,
England and several other countries had also arrived on the
coast. Worried about the constant invasions, the Portuguese
government decided to colonize the territory, dividing it into
15 hereditary captaincies, granted to 12 noblemen.
Their main duty was to occupy and cultivate the land, facing
the attacks from Indians and smugglers. The area today occupied
by the state of Rio de Janeiro covers what was at the time two
captaincies: São Vicente, granted to Martim Afonso de
Souza in 1534, and São Tomé, received by Pero
Góis da Silveira in 1536.
In 1555, once again the French, this time as settlers under
the leadership of Vice-Admiral Nicolas Villegagnon, established
themselves on the small islands of Guanabara Bay, founded French
Antarctica and built the Coligny Fort on the island where the
Naval School is now located, near Santos Dumont Airport.
The group was driven out between 1560 and 1567, and their fort
was destroyed after arduous battle. In order to prevent new
invasions and to ensure the possession of the territory by the
Portuguese Crown, Estácio de Sá founded the city
of São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro on March 1st,
1565 in the Royal Captaincy of Rio de Janeiro.
Over the following centuries, those who joined Rio's population
were mostly Portuguese immigrants, African slaves and immigrants
from several other peoples. First came the Swiss, working as
free settlers on the farms and founding the city of Nova Friburgo,
in 1820, in the highland region.
Then came the Germans, who headed to Petrópolis, and
the Fins, who settled down in Penedo. Italians and Spaniards
arrived much later, but also contributed equally to the ethnic
diversity and cultural plurality which characterizes Rio de
Janeiro even today.
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