Empire · since 1822 · Northern South America

Empire of Brazil and Brazil

Also known as Kingdom of Brazil, Brazil

When Napoleon invaded Portugal in 1807, the Portuguese royal family fled to Rio de Janeiro, which became the capital of the whole empire. After King João VI returned to Lisbon, his son Pedro declared Brazil independent in 1822 and became its emperor.

Unlike its Spanish-speaking neighbours, Brazil stayed united as a constitutional monarchy, and Pedro II's long reign from 1831 brought stability and coffee wealth, though the economy depended on slavery. Brazil fought Paraguay in the devastating war of 1864–70. Slavery was abolished only in 1888, the last in the Americas, and the next year the army proclaimed a republic. Getúlio Vargas ruled from 1930 to 1945 and again in the 1950s, and the new capital Brasília opened in 1960. A military dictatorship from 1964 to 1985 gave way to democracy.

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Years

since 1822

Capital

Rio de Janeiro; Brasília from 1960

Greatest extent

1903, about 8.52 million km²

Region

Northern South America

8,515,000 km²; after acquiring Acre from Bolivia (the Empire in 1889 was c. 8.34M km², IBGE)